Northern Line

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review the public private partnership funding arrangements for the Northern Line; and if he will make a statement.

Karen Buck: holding answer 21 October 2005
	The Northern Line PFI contract is the responsibility of Tube Lines, and the management of the contract is a matter for the mayor and Transport for London. The Department expects both London Underground and Tube Lines to manage effectively the PPP and PFI contracts and ensure that their contractual requirements are met.
	The PPP contracts are about delivering lasting solutions to reverse the historic under-investment in the Underground. The Government has committed more than a £1 billion a year to Transport for London to provide the long-term stability and investment necessary for London Underground to deliver the service that Londoners deserve.

Road Closures (Sporting Events)

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what his policy is regarding road closures taking place for non-essential, non-transport related events; whether any assessments are made before such closures are authorised of the likely congestion to be caused; whether he plans to review his policy on such closures; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what advice he has issued to highway authorities concerning road closures for social or sporting events.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department's policy on road closures for special events is that generally this is a matter for local authorities to decide under their powers at Section 16A of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984.
	The Department published the network management duty guidance under part 2 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 in November 2004. The annex on good practice provides guidance for local authorities on event planning processes and management practices so as to minimise disruption to the local network.
	In preparation for HM the Queen's Golden Jubilee in 2002, the Department also issued advice to the chief executives of all English local authorities on temporary road closures to facilitate events, such as street parties.
	The Home Office are currently preparing "The Good Practice Safety Guide for small and sporting events taking place on the highway, roads and public places", which will include advice on temporary road closures.
	The Department plans to bring forward proposals by way of a Regulatory Reform Order to repeal section 16B of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 so that the requirements on local authorities for making orders for sporting, social or entertainment events lasting longer than three days held on road are relaxed.

Volunteering

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many volunteering positions his Department has offered in each of the last five years.

Karen Buck: The Department for Transport recognises the benefits of volunteering both to the individual and the organisation as outlined in the Department's strategy "Working in Partnership with the Voluntary and Community Sector".
	The Department does not hold information on the number of volunteering positions offered in each of the last five years. This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Vehicles

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Solicitor-General how many vehicles for which the Law Officers' Department are responsible are fitted with retreaded tyres.

Mike O'Brien: For information on the use of retread tyres in vehicles provided to departments by the Government Car and Dispatch Agency I refer the hon. Member to the letter of 11 October 2005 which he received from the Chief Executive of the GCDA, reference UIN 15087 and UIN 15088. Copies of this letter are available in the Library.
	I am told the Departments which the Law Officers' supervise, the Revenue and Customs Prosecutions Office, the Serious Fraud Office, the Treasury Solicitor's Department and HM CPS Inspectorate do not own or lease any vehicles. The Crown Prosecution Service has 20 leased vehicles, none of which use retreaded tyres.

Electoral Administration System

Oliver Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will place in the Library copies of the submissions received by her Department as part of its consultation on the Electoral Administration Bill.

Harriet Harman: We received over 160 responses, within the deadline, to the policy paper on electoral administration which was put out on 25 May this year.
	I refer the hon. Gentleman for North East Hertfordshire to the written ministerial statement issued on 11 October 2005, Official Report, column 17WS.

Judiciary (Disabled Judges)

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many judges have a physical disability; and what steps the Department takes (a) to monitor disability among the judiciary and (b) to make a judicial career more accessible to those with a disability.

Harriet Harman: Full data on the incidence and type of disability in the serving judiciary is not currently available. We are currently considering how to improve the disability information we hold.
	We are working with organisations and individuals with an expertise or interest in disability equality, such as the Disability Rights Commission, to explore what more needs to be done to support disabled judges and candidates for appointment.
	The Lord Chancellor will make a statement on judicial diversity in early November, in which he will outline the work to be taken forward on disability.

Magistrates Courts

David Davies: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much has been spent over the last five years on (a) maintaining and (b) refurbishing (i) Barry, (ii) Neath, (iii) Port Talbot and (iv) Aberdare magistrates courts.

Harriet Harman: Expenditure incurred on refurbishment was not separately recorded from other types of maintenance. The following table provides the aggregated sums recorded by the local authority, over the last five financial years, of spend on maintenance and capital maintenance projects. It is likely that the spend on capital maintenance was mainly in respect of refurbishment works.
	
		
			   £ 
			 Magistrates court Maintenance Capital maintenance 
		
		
			 Barry 355,281.70 251,460.90 
			 Neath 232,189.47 103,641.85 
			 Port Talbot 295,231.00 231,224.59 
			 Aberdare 563,191.00 110,579.59

Ministerial Travel

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many air miles were accrued through departmental ministerial travel in 2004–05, broken down by Minister; how many were (a) foregone and (b) donated to charity, broken down by charity; and whether air miles accrued by officials were required to be (i) foregone and (ii) given to charity.

Bridget Prentice: Figures for air miles accrued by Ministers are not held by this Department. All ministerial travel is conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers" and guidance for Ministers on the use of air miles is set out in the "Ministerial Code". This guidance makes clear that air miles should be used only for official purposes or else foregone. However, if it is impracticable to use the benefits for Government travel, it is possible for Ministers to donate them to charity if permitted under the terms of the airline's scheme. Similar rules are in place for officials.

Persistent and Prolific Offenders

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what guidelines she has issued on how criminal cases involving persistent and prolific offenders should be treated by the courts.

Harriet Harman: Guidance to the courts on handling prolific and other priority offender cases was issued by the senior presiding judge in April 2005.
	The PPO Strategy requires courts to provide a "Premium Service" so that relevant cases are listed expeditiously, trial readiness is checked regularly, ineffective trials are always monitored, enforcement warrants are given priority and orders are flagged up to the Prison, Probation and Youth Offending Services, as appropriate.

Housing

Paul Burstow: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for South-West Surrey (Mr. Hunt) of 14 October 2005, Official Report, column 612W, on housing, if he will break down the figures by London borough.

Yvette Cooper: Estimates for densities of new residential dwellings for London boroughs are from Land Use Change Statistics and are shown as follows. The densities are very variable from one year to the next as they can be affected by a small number of developments in each borough.
	
		Density of new residential dwellings built: London boroughs, 1985–2004 Dwellings per hectare
		
			 London borough 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 
		
		
			 City of London — — — — 50 667 — — — — 
			 Barking and Dagenham 167 — — 65 63 36 53 67 86 42 
			 Barnet 20 — — 44 37 35 41 45 49 46 
			 Bexley 11 — — 45 37 32 37 38 33 42 
			 Brent 33 — — 77 59 82 66 62 88 43 
			 Bromley 14 17 20 31 31 22 23 30 28 26 
			 Camden — — — 68 65 50 21 84 104 88 
			 Croydon 16 19 28 40 27 32 37 29 31 44 
			 Ealing 17 — 33 72 12 49 64 58 54 88 
			 Enfield 9 — 59 60 81 56 52 45 64 36 
			 Greenwich 32 62 58 47 48 45 64 50 48 55 
			 Hackney — 67 74 58 62 43 36 57 64 93 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham — — — 75 140 70 38 38 19 43 
			 Haringey 13 — 60 41 59 43 59 52 63 55 
			 Harrow 22 — 47 30 39 48 35 48 40 31 
			 Havering 20 33 9 35 36 30 21 37 37 36 
			 Hillingdon 11 15 76 52 43 24 25 22 22 31 
			 Hounslow 19 28 300 37 48 52 41 52 40 39 
			 Islington 400 — — 60 43 76 45 44 61 104 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 200 — — 71 100 98 41 51 85 68 
			 Kingston upon Thames 16 — 43 42 50 41 41 37 36 37 
			 Lambeth 33 33 35 87 75 48 43 69 48 103 
			 Lewisham 20 87 78 55 52 65 64 59 64 45 
			 Merton 22 8 64 51 88 48 49 37 39 43 
			 Newham — 67 40 54 50 51 53 56 44 48 
			 Redbridge 32 — 48 64 59 33 48 40 43 44 
			 Richmond upon Thames 29 15 52 42 38 32 41 39 57 56 
			 Southwark 40 — 37 136 63 79 78 77 84 67 
			 Sutton 33 36 46 59 41 40 46 45 51 50 
			 Tower Hamlets — 57 113 76 59 95 105 63 89 68 
			 Waltham Forest 44 50 40 59 49 55 57 61 57 48 
			 Wandsworth 77 — 28 75 60 69 59 80 54 50 
			 Westminster 133 — 60 99 142 134 54 75 104 131 
		
	
	
		
			 London borough 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 
		
		
			 City of London — 5 80 230 165 266 960 — — — 
			 Barking and Dagenham 58 43 47 44 39 42 41 54 104 190 
			 Barnet 37 50 47 24 29 68 40 58 66 41 
			 Bexley 56 36 23 38 33 29 35 28 38 10 
			 Brent 47 90 45 44 41 39 56 72 74 82 
			 Bromley 24 31 28 25 27 47 25 21 40 46 
			 Camden 60 76 54 88 107 112 43 102 130 — 
			 Croydon 30 31 33 26 26 31 48 51 46 31 
			 Ealing 46 63 71 56 56 71 63 47 77 72 
			 Enfield 35 47 59 48 47 41 34 67 90 77 
			 Greenwich 48 48 41 37 41 70 33 42 53 83 
			 Hackney 56 50 77 70 73 90 81 108 106 204 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 91 84 62 85 72 83 55 68 52 — 
			 Haringey 52 44 64 58 85 80 49 70 107 76 
			 Harrow 24 18 36 23 49 41 27 36 84 103 
			 Havering 36 34 27 44 39 31 44 42 31 56 
			 Hillingdon 30 33 38 35 35 41 34 66 55 47 
			 Hounslow 45 66 46 69 54 66 47 57 121 88 
			 Islington 43 114 78 119 130 105 70 98 86 158 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 56 84 95 91 107 119 25 142 80 — 
			 Kingston upon Thames 26 46 37 53 33 46 35 54 92 59 
			 Lambeth 66 67 73 76 72 89 74 90 127 80 
			 Lewisham 50 85 61 73 83 31 55 83 57 122 
			 Merton 51 56 51 43 46 45 77 49 109 58 
			 Newham 49 56 45 60 60 57 79 81 97 257 
			 Redbridge 56 40 40 43 34 26 34 34 110 100 
			 Richmond upon Thames 61 32 32 64 48 45 48 62 56 59 
			 Southwark 66 74 60 66 112 87 105 61 116 109 
			 Sutton 51 38 33 32 35 38 36 55 49 47 
			 Tower Hamlets 94 80 95 82 130 140 80 105 189 280 
			 Waltham Forest 47 52 46 51 37 38 27 57 36 120 
			 Wandsworth 52 55 42 71 66 72 58 43 158 154 
			 Westminster 97 138 71 119 182 42 169 113 149 110

Housing

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many people are on the housing register in each London borough.

Yvette Cooper: The requested data based on the latest available year is tabled.
	Local authorities in England report the numbers of households on their housing waiting list as at 1 April in their annual Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix returns. Local authorities sometimes maintain a common waiting list with the Housing Association/s in their district. However, information is not held centrally where a Housing Association maintains a separate waiting list to the local authority.
	
		Number of households on the housing register as at 1 April 2005
		
			 Local authority Number of households 
		
		
			 Barking and Dagenham 2,321 
			 Barnet 13,627 
			 Bexley 4,528 
			 Brent 17,351 
			 Bromley 2,998 
			 Camden 16,532 
			 City of London 1,204 
			 Croydon 8,856 
			 Ealing 14,324 
			 Enfield 7,872 
			 Greenwich 7,666 
			 Hackney 7,744 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 8,384 
			 Haringey 19,930 
			 Harrow 4,944 
			 Havering 3,477 
			 Hillingdon 7,471 
			 Hounslow 10,382 
			 Islington 6,326 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 9,436 
			 Kingston upon Thames 4,903 
			 Lambeth 10,648 
			 Lewisham 18,279 
			 Merton 5,188 
			 Newham 25,317 
			 Redbridge 7,941 
			 Richmond upon Thames 4,898 
			 Southwark 7,548 
			 Sutton 3,724 
			 Tower Hamlets 21,183 
			 Waltham Forest 8,837 
			 Wandsworth 8,668 
			 Westminster 6,565 
			 London 309,072 
		
	
	Source:
	ODPM's Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix (HSSA)

Housing

Adam Holloway: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many people are in council housing in Kent, broken down by borough council.

Yvette Cooper: Data on the number of people in council housing in Kent is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has information on the number of dwellings owned by each district authority in Kent. This data as at 1 April 2005 is given in the following table:
	
		Local authority stock in Kent, by district, at 1 April 2005
		
			  
		
		
			 Ashford 5,416 
			 Canterbury 5,320 
			 Dartford 4,437 
			 Dover 4,753 
			 Gravesham 6,132 
			 Maidstone 0 
			 Sevenoaks 0 
			 Shepway 3,520 
			 Swale 16 
			 Thanet 3,180 
			 Tonbridge and Malling 0 
			 Tunbridge Wells 33 
			 Kent 32,807 
		
	
	Note:
	Large-Scale Voluntary Transfer (LSVT) authorities could retain small amount of stock (normally below 100).
	Source:
	ODPM Housing Strategy Statistical Appendix return.

Housing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the levels of tenant satisfaction (a) before and after large-scale voluntary transfer, (b) before and after the establishment of arm's length management organisations, (c) of tenants in privatised council housing and (d) of tenants remaining in council controlled housing.

Yvette Cooper: Data from the Survey of English Housing (SEH) for 2004–05 shows that 74 per cent. of tenants of registered social landlords (RSLs) are satisfied with the housing services provided by their landlord, and 67 per cent. of local authority tenants are satisfied. Housemark data for 2004–05 shows that 75 of tenants of arm's length management organisations (ALMOs) are satisfied.
	The SEH 2004–05 also asked RSL tenants whose homes had been transferred from local authority ownership since 2000 how the service provided by the RSL compared to that from the local authority. 27 per cent. of tenants reported that the service from the RSL was better than the local authority, 62 per cent. said it was the same and 11 per cent. said it was worse. No comparable question was asked for ALMOs.

Housing Associations

Andrew Smith: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will publish the value for grant assessments of each housing association produced by the comparator developed by the National Audit Office and the Housing Corporation.

Yvette Cooper: The Housing Corporation does not yet have all the information necessary to produce the "Value for Grant Comparator" fully. It is currently populating the comparator with the limited data it has available and testing it. The corporation expects the comparator to become fully operational from 2006.

Incapacity Benefit

Danny Alexander: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment the Government has made of the (a) regional variations in take-up of incapacity benefit and the (b) implications for regional economic development; and if he will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: Within the English regions, there are large regional variations in the take up of incapacity benefit (IB) with 11.2 per cent. of the working age population claiming IB in the North East compared to 4.6 per cent. in the South East. The three northern regions (North East, North West, Yorkshire and Humberside) account for over 860,000 claimants, almost 40 per cent. of the English total, yet their working age population account for just 28 per cent. of the English total. Wales and Scotland also have high proportions of their working age population on incapacity benefit.
	High rates of inactivity will undoubtedly affect the economic performance of a region. The Government and its partners in the regions are committed to improving the economic performance of each region, which is why the ODPM, HMT and DTI have a joint Public Service Agreement (PSA) to:
	"Make sustainable improvements in the economic performance of all the English regions by 2008 and over the long term reduce the persistent gap in growth rates between the regions, demonstrating progress by 2006"
	The Government is similarly also committed to increasing economic development and employment opportunities in Scotland and Wales and more generally works in partnership with the devolved administrations to promote prosperity in all parts of the UK.
	Employment is seen as a key driver in this target and supporting incapacity benefit claimants into work is essential in reducing the employment disparities between the regions. DWP's Pathways to Work will play a crucial role in achieving this target across the whole of Great Britain and will also assist the Northern Way's target to get 100,000 people off IB by 2014. By October 2006, 11 of the 15 English Pathways will be operational in the three northern regions. In addition to this, the Northern Way will run complementary IB pilots and the first of these is due to start on 7 November 2005 in the district of Easington, which has one of the highest rates of IB claimants at 19.7 per cent. (in 2004). By October 2006 the number of Pathways to Work pilots will increase to four in Wales and three in Scotland.

Submarines

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to (a) replace and (b) extend the life of the Vanguard class submarine; and if he will make a statement.

John Reid: I have nothing to add to the answers I gave to the hon. Members for Pendle (Mr. Prentice) on 20 October 2005, Official Report, column 1217W and New Forest East (Dr. Lewis) on 7 June 2005, Official Report, column 466W.

Malawi/Niger

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps are being taken to ascertain the need for humanitarian assistance in (a) Malawi and (b) Niger.

Hilary Benn: Malawi has an early warning system, the Malawi Vulnerability System Committee (MVAC). DFID finances the secretariat. The MVAC made its first assessment of the need for humanitarian assistance as soon as harvest and other data was available and reported in May. By June, food aid was being delivered. 1.8 million people have received food aid to date; it is planned to feed 2.8 million by December. The MVAC is updating its assessment and will provide a preliminary revision next week, with a full reassessment by early November. DFID's commitment to humanitarian assistance for this year's food shortages in Malawi totals £15.32 million. The UK stands ready to do more if more people need to be fed.
	In Niger, a major humanitarian relief operation has been under way over the past three months in response to a food crisis affecting an estimated three million people, with the lives of up to 150,000 children at risk. The humanitarian operation is now working at full capacity and has helped to avert a major catastrophe. The UK has played an important part, being one of the first donors to respond when the United Nations and NGO relief agencies alerted the world to the severity of the crisis. To date, around 2.8 million people have received food aid and more than 90,000 children have received life-saving nutritional therapy. Food is also under harvest, and thanks to good rains, a bumper crop is expected. Nonetheless, the relief effort will continue in the months ahead, with priority being given to the needs of malnourished children and to those who will not benefit fully or adequately from the new harvest. Much work also remains to help those who have suffered during the crisis to recover, and in the longer term to put in place welfare safety nets and other measures to help the most impoverished people of Niger avoid further crises of this kind. DFID sent a humanitarian adviser to Niger last June, to neighbouring countries in August, and to Niger again this month. On the basis of his report, we shall be reviewing needs, and options to provide humanitarian assistance to the recovery process.

Malawi/Niger

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what support his Department has provided to Niger in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not had a bilateral development assistance programme with Niger during the past five years, but does provide significant support through multilateral channels such as the United Nations agencies and the EC development programme, of which the estimated UK share amounted to £6.2 million in 2002. We have also provided debt relief, humanitarian assistance and small project support. Details are shown in the following table.
	Having reached completion point under the heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative in April 2004, Niger is now benefiting from increased debt relief, including £4.513 million (in 2004 net present value) on bilateral debts to the UK through the Paris Club. The UK will also provide US$915,190 (approximately £520,000) to Niger in 2005 as part of our multilateral debt relief initiative (to be superseded from next year by debt stock cancellation as recently agreed at the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
	In February, as part of efforts to strengthen Anglo-French cooperation on development issues in Africa, DFID agreed to provide £7 million initially through the French development programme in support of Niger's basic education policy, with particular emphasis on getting more girls into primary education.
	In recent months DFID has made a significant contribution to the food relief operation in Niger. Our total support of £3.25 million is among the top three bilateral contributions, and amongst the quickest. Our funding is contributing to the general feeding of up to 1,700,000 people, nutritional therapy for up to 60,000 malnourished children, emergency health care for up to 1,750,000 vulnerable people, and emergency livestock interventions for up to 21,000 people.
	
		Total UK aid to Niger £000
		
			  2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Financial Aid  
			 HIPC Trust Funds — — 126 61 2,973 
			   
			 TC  
			 Wholly Financed Personnel: Long Term — — — — — 
			 Consultancies — — — — — 
			   
			 Grant and Other Aid in Kind  
			 Heads of Mission Projects and Gifts 15 20 — — 35 
			 JFS Accountable Grants 130 108 58 58 31 
			 Civil Society Challenge Fund 5 — — — 28 
			   
			 Humanitarian Assistance  
			 Food Aid—through UN Channels — — — — — 
			 Disaster Relief—through NGO Channels — — — — — 
			 Disaster Relief—through UN Channels — — — — — 
			   
			 Debt Relief  
			 Naples Terms — — — — 4,400 
			 Toronto Terms 137 109 82 54 33 
			 Trinidad Terms 710 110 100 90 80 
			   
			 Total 997 347 366 263 7,581

West Papua

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of illegal logging and mining activity in West Papua.

Gareth Thomas: The scale of illegal logging and mining in Papua has, until recently, been poorly understood. An official Government of Indonesia investigation team in 2003 was turned away by the Governor of Papua. February 2005, however, saw the publication of a damning report "The Last Frontier" by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and local NGO Telapak, supported by DFID. This resulted from several years of undercover investigations and reported that timber theft on a massive scale was taking place in Papua, to a value of $1 billion a year, mostly exported to feed the booming timber industries in China.
	The report galvanised serious action from the Government of Indonesia, which sent a team of 1,500 people to investigate, but no high level convictions resulted. The investigation was closed after criticism in Parliament of its lack of focus, inability to reach powerful actors, and unfair scape-goating of poor rural communities. However, the Ministry of Forestry has now instigated a review of the timber licensing systems in Papua, which DFID is currently supporting.
	There have been no systematic investigations into illegal mining in Papua. In 2001, the Indonesian environmental organization Walhi brought a successful conviction against Freeport Mines for breaking environmental law and misinforming the public about its responsibility for the inadequate construction and subsequent breach of a dam below its mine site that was filled with toxic waste. The dam's breach resulted in many deaths. The conviction was later overturned on appeal.
	DFID has been supporting the work of EIA/Telapak for a number of years, through our Forestry Programme (MFP) in Indonesia. The programme is also supporting the review of current forest management systems with the Ministry of Forestry, the Papua Provincial Forest Department, local NGOs and community groups. More widely in Papua, the programme is supporting rural communities to strengthen local institutions and map their traditional land claims in order for them to better negotiate with government and private businesses over future forest land uses.
	DFID also supports a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding on Illegal Logging with the Government of Indonesia, which aims to tackle illegal logging in a variety of ways but has no activities specific to Papua. The Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan, which DFID supports through the EU, foresees a voluntary partnership agreement with the Government of Indonesia that would restrict imports of illegal timber from Indonesia to the European Union member states.
	DFID continues to support EIA/Telapak through a new grant to focus specifically on Papua, building the capacity of local NGOs to fulfil a stronger watchdog role over illegal logging activities.
	DFID does not provide support to address the problems of illegal mining.

Illegal Migrants

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many illegal migrants including dependants he estimates are resident in London.

Tony McNulty: As in other countries, the number of "unauthorised" or "illegal" migrants—including failed asylum seekers—in the UK is unknown. A report by the Migration Research Unit (MRU) of University College London on "Sizing the Illegally Resident Population in the UK" was published last year. It reviewed the methods used by researchers and Government agencies in other countries and assessed their viability for use in the UK.
	That report suggested that a method which could be applied in the UK is the "residual method" used in the United States. The new report details how that method has been applied in the UK. It was published by the Home Office on 30 June. A copy of the RDS on-line report 29/05—"Sizing the unauthorised (illegal) migrant population in the United Kingdom in 2001" can be found at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/notes/june_summaries.html.
	The central estimate of the illegally resident population is 430,000. This is not broken down geographically. It must be emphasised that, while this method is one that can be used with data available for the UK, over-reliance must not be placed on this result in the absence of the means to produce other estimates using different methods.

Illegal Migrants

Jon Cruddas: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many illegal immigrants have been found (a) within the UK and (b) in London in each year since 1992.

Tony McNulty: The number of persons who have had enforcement action initiated against them as illegal entrants in each year since 1992 is given in the table. People who have had enforcement action initiated against them may then be removed from the country.
	There may be some barriers to removal including judicial or human rights applications; lack of documentation (without which an applicant cannot be returned); absence of a travel route, lack of co-operation from receiving countries or scheduled flight services (resulting in lengthy documentation processes or use of charter flights).
	Alternatively, some people may decide to leave voluntarily, after enforcement action has been initiated against them and others may chose to leave via Assisted Voluntary Returns programmes run by the International Organisation for Migration. Information on the number of illegal immigrants that have been found in London is not available.
	
		Persons subject to illegal entry enforcement action(4), 1992 to 2004, United Kingdom
		
			  Persons against whom enforcement action was initiated(5)(6) 
		
		
			 1992 5,670 
			 1993 5,780 
			 1994 7,540 
			 1995 10,820 
			 1996 14,560 
			 1997 14,390 
			 1998 16,500 
			 1999 21,165 
			 2000 47,325 
			 2001 69,875 
			 2002 48,050 
			 2003 — 
			 2004(7)(8)(9) 36,550 
		
	
	(4) Under sections 3(6), 3(7) or 33(1) of the Immigration Act 1971, or under section 10 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.
	(5) Figures rounded to the nearest five.
	(6) Illegal entrants detected and persons issued with a notice of intention to deport, recommended for deportation by a court or proceeded against under Section 10.
	(7) 2004 figures include dependants of asylum seekers.
	(8) Figures for 2004 include nationals of the 10 EU accession countries.
	(9) Provisional.

Child Trust Fund

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much money has been allocated to publicising the Child Trust Fund for the periods (a) January to 31 December 2004, (b) January 2005 to 30 June 2005, (c) 30 June 2005 to 30 September 2005 and (d) 30 September 2005 to 31 December 2005, broken down by (i) radio, (ii) television and (iii) newspaper advertising; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The objectives of the Child Trust Fund advertising campaign are:
	to ensure that parents are aware of the Child Trust Fund;
	to ensure that parents understand what they need to do to open an account and where they can go for more information; and
	to encourage parents to open an account for their child.
	As at 20 August 2005, 1,927,000 vouchers had been issued and 889,000 accounts had been opened.
	Total media spend on advertising during the periods listed above was as follows (these figures include any related media buying fees, but exclude VAT):
	
		
			 £ 
			 Period Radio Television Newspaper Total 
		
		
			 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2004 0 0 0 0 
			 1 January 2005 to 30 June 2005 340,000 1.48 million 800,000 2.62 million 
			 30 June 2005 to 30 September 2005 210,000 970,000 99,000 1.28 million 
			 30 September 2005 to 31 December 2005(12) 0 960,000 250,000 1.2 million 
		
	
	(12) Figures for 30 September 2005 to 31 December 2005 are approximate, as final costs will not be known until after the current burst of advertising has finished.

Tax Credits

Charles Walker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will cease to pursue low income households for the repayment of overpaid tax credits; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: HMRC's approach to handling overpayments is set out in Code of Practice 26: "What happens if we have paid you too much tax credit?" It explains that, for claimants receiving the maximum award of child or working tax credit, there is a limit of 10 per cent. on the amount by which HMRC will reduce tax credits payments to recover overpaid tax credits from a previous year.
	CoP26 is published on the HMRC website and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.

Tax Credits

Adam Holloway: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people in Kent have benefited financially from the tax credit system in 2005.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer my hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Mid-Bedfordshire (Mrs. Dorries) on 10 October 2005, Official Report, column 321W.

Working Hours

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were working (a) fewer than 16 hours per week, (b) more than 16 hours per week and (c) more than 30 hours per week in each year since 1996–97; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell to Mr. Laws, dated 24 October 2005
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the number hours worked per week. (20022)
	The attached table provides the available information on usual weekly hours worked for the categories requested, covering the three month periods ending in August of the years 1996–2005.
	These estimates from the Labour Force Survey are, as with any sample survey, subject to sampling variability.
	
		All persons in employment by usual weekly hours of work(15):United Kingdom, seasonally adjusted Thousands
		
			 Three months ending August All in employment Less than 16 hours 16 up to 30 hours 31 hours and over 
		
		
			 1996 26,064 2,682 3,908 19,474 
			 1997 26,512 2,649 4,052 19,811 
			 1998 26,829 2,589 4,184 20,055 
			 1999 27,162 2,610 4,295 20,257 
			 2000 27,557 2,624 4,443 20,491 
			 2001 27,714 2,411 4,590 20,714 
			 2002 27,921 2,499 4,727 20,695 
			 2003 28,186 2,576 4,816 20,793 
			 2004 28,414 2,463 5,014 20,937 
			 2005 28,759 2,424 5,089 21,246 
		
	
	(15) Main job only.
	Note:
	Due to rounding, some figures may not add up.
	Source:
	ONS—Labour Force Survey

Nuclear Power

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what (a) polling and (b) focus groups on nuclear power his Department has undertaken in the last three years ;and if he will place copies of the results in the Library.

Malcolm Wicks: There has been no polling or focus groups on nuclear power since the publication of the Energy White Paper 2003.
	The following papers on keeping the nuclear option open (KNOO) were prepared for the DTI's Energy Advisory Panel and contributed to the work on the Energy White Paper:
	KNOO Scoping Paper (EAP 11.06.02—P3)
	KNOO Summary Paper (EAP 01.10.02—P3)
	KNOO Miniprojects
	These papers were placed in the Libraries of the House at the start for this year in response to a written parliamentary question from the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Peter Law) on 23 February 2005, Official Report, column 648W.

Welsh Language Act

Elfyn Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many Departments of state have yet to comply with the Welsh Language Act 1993 in not having adopted a language scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: Although Crown bodies are not required to have a Welsh language scheme, it is the Government's practice to comply with the principle that, in the conduct of public business in Wales, the Welsh and English languages should be treated on a basis of equality.
	Welsh Language Board data indicates that nine Government Departments currently have approved schemes. Two are actively preparing schemes (one of these is a replacement scheme following merger of departments). The Board has issued notifications to a further three departments, asking them to prepare a scheme.

BBC

Ann Cryer: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what further initiatives the Government will take to promote ongoing public involvement with the BBC following the review of its charter.

Tessa Jowell: As explained in the Green Paper, we will establish a new "BBC Trust" which will embody the public interest and reflect the views of the licence fee payer. Part of the Trust's remit will be to ensure communication and consultation with licence fee payers through a rolling programme of quantitative and qualitative research, viewer forums and decision-making based on direct engagement with the public.

BBC

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost in real terms of the BBC licence fee has been in each of the last 30 years.

James Purnell: The value, as at April 2005 (the date of the latest licence fee increase), of the colour television licence fee for each of the last 30 years was:
	
		
			   £ 
			  Colour TV licence fee Value at April 2005 prices 
		
		
			 1975 18.00 105.39 
			 1976 18.00 88.63 
			 1977 21.00 86.52 
			 1978 25.00 92.93 
			 1979 34.00 108.15 
			 1980 34.00 98.53 
			 1981 46.00 112.84 
			 1982 46.00 108.74 
			 1983 46.00 104.56 
			 1984 46.00 99.45 
			 1985 58.00 117.28 
			 1986 58.00 113.80 
			 1987 60.00 112.92 
			 1988 62.50 113.19 
			 1989 66.00 110.62 
			 1990 71.00 108.77 
			 1991 77.00 110.88 
			 1992 80.00 110.40 
			 1993 83.00 113.13 
			 1994 84.50 112.30 
			 1995 86.50 111.24 
			 1996 89.50 112.41 
			 1997 91.50 112.18 
			 1998 97.50 114.86 
			 1999 101.00 117.16 
			 2000 104.00 117.10 
			 2001 109.00 120.66 
			 2002 112.00 122.08 
			 2003 116.00 122.61 
			 2004 121.00 124.87 
			 2005 126.50 126.50 
		
	
	Note:
	The upratings are based on the percentage changes in the all items Retail Prices Index from the month of the licence fee increase (or April of the relevant year in years where there was no increase) to April 2005.

2012 Olympics

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans there are to hold events in Northern Ireland as part of the 2012 Olympic games.

Richard Caborn: At present no Olympic or Paralympic sporting competition is planned to take place in Northern Ireland. If Northern Ireland builds its planned national stadium, we will consider incorporating this venue as a location for the Olympic football competition.
	However, the torch relay, and other events as part of the cultural Olympiad are planned to take place in Northern Ireland to help ensure the people of Northern Ireland can be part of and share in the excitement of the 2012 games.

Art (Crosby)

Claire Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will make a statement on the role of art in economic regeneration, with particular reference to Crosby.

David Lammy: The Department has long been an advocate for the power of art—and culture in general—to regenerate areas, not just economically, but socially and environmentally. And I applaud the wonderful work that Antony Gormley has created in Crosby with the "Another Place" installation, in the north-east with the Angel of the North and on a local level in areas such as the Bellenden Renewal Area in Peckham, South London.

Television Licences

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the number of households which did not have a television licence but had a television in each of the last five years for which records are available.

James Purnell: The estimated number of premises requiring a television licence but where no licence was in force, as at the end of March for each of the last five years, was:
	
		
			  million 
			  Estimated number of unlicensed premises 
		
		
			 2001 1.70 
			 2002 1.65 
			 2003 1.55 
			 2004 1.35 
			 2005 1.3

Central America

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the priority his Department accords to diplomatic representation in central America.

Douglas Alexander: The December 2003 White Paper "UK International Priorities: a strategy for the FCO" (Cm 6052) set out the Government's international priorities for the next 10 years and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's strategy for delivering them. We currently have three embassies and one high commission in Central America helping to deliver that strategy in Guatemala, Belize, Costa Rica and Panama. We also have an embassy in Mexico.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he will reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton, dated (a) 16 June 2005, with regard to Mrs. Z. Khanum, (b) 13 June 2005, with regard to Mr. Abdul Rehman and (c) 8 July 2005, with regard to El Hadja Souley Manou.

Kim Howells: My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Triesman of Tottenham) replied to my right hon. Friend's letters with regard to Mrs. Z Khanum, Mr. Abdul Rehman and El Hadja Souley Manou on 18 October.

First-class Post

Andrew Selous: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission if the Commission will undertake an urgent investigation into the reasons that House of Commons franked first -class post regularly fails to reach hon. Members at any point during the day after posting.

Nick Harvey: There have been some teething problems with the interface between the new screening process and the mail service. The two contractors are working together to resolve these as quickly as possible.

Marginal Deduction Rates

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the value of passported benefits is taken into account when figures on marginal deduction rates are produced.

Dawn Primarolo: I have been asked to reply.
	Marginal deduction rates are calculated by combining figures for marginal tax rates, national insurance rates, tax credit taper rates, and benefit withdrawal rates. The concept of a marginal deduction rate is less meaningful when applied to passported benefits since they are "all or nothing" benefits that are not tapered with income.

Poverty

David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) children and (b) pensioners were living in poverty in (i) Walsall borough and (ii) Walsall North constituency in (A) 1997 and (B) 2005.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 20 October 2005
	The information requested is not available below regional level. The latest information for the West Midlands is shown in the following table.
	
		Numbers of children and pensioners living in households with incomes below 60 per cent. of median income in the West Midlands million
		
			  1996–97 2003–04 
		
		
			 Children:   
			 Before housing costs 0.4 0.3 
			 After housing costs 0.4 0.4 
			
			 Pensioners:   
			 Before housing costs 0.2 0.2 
			 After housing costs 0.3 0.2 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. The estimates use the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' (BHAI) series which uses disposable household income, adjusted for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living.
	2. It is not possible to present estimates from the FRS below Government Office Region level due to small sample sizes, and the survey design not being fully representative at this level.
	3. Estimates are based on sample counts which have been adjusted for non-response.
	Source:
	Family Resources Survey (FRS)

Air Weapons

William McCrea: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many air weapon offences have been committed in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: The chief constable has supplied the following table of statistics.
	
		Offences recorded by the police where an air gun was involved in the incident(16)
		
			  Overall crime 
			 District command unit 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Antrim 3 3 5 8 
			 Ards 7 12 16 16 
			 Armagh 0 2 0 2 
			 Banbridge 2 1 1 5 
			 East Belfast 12 4 10 11 
			 North Belfast 4 3 7 12 
			 South Belfast 1 5 3 1 
			 West Belfast 8 3 42 21 
			 Ballymena 10 2 1 2 
			 Ballymoney 1 0 0 1 
			 Carrickfergus 9 2 18 19 
			 Coleraine 2 3 8 18 
			 Cookstown 1 0 3 1 
			 Craigavon 10 3 6 31 
			 Castlereagh 18 4 5 2 
			 Dungannon and South  Tyrone 1 1 4 1 
			 Down 4 1 7 14 
			 Fermanagh 2 2 0 1 
			 Foyle 1 0 1 13 
			 Larne 10 0 4 19 
			 Limavady 1 1 9 16 
			 Lisburn 10 5 1 5 
			 Magherafelt 2 1 0 3 
			 Moyle 0 0 1 1 
			 Newtownabbey 2 12 17 26 
			 North Down 5 3 5 10 
			 Newry and Mourne 14 11 6 13 
			 Omagh 2 3 3 9 
			 Strabane 0 3 3 2 
			  
			 Northern Ireland 142 90 186 283 
		
	
	(16) These figures relate to offences where an air gun was involved in the incident—it is not known how the air gun was actually used.
	Note:
	PSNI record figures related to the number of crimes where an air gun has been used in the incident. Included within the air gun category are air pistol, air rifle, air gun, and ball bearing gun.
	Source:
	Central Statistics Unit, PSNI

Dentistry

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many children in the Province were registered with a dentist in 1997.

Shaun Woodward: Information requested is provided in the table as follows.
	
		
			  Number 
		
		
			 Children registered with an NHS Dentist,  June 1997(17)(18) 285,960 
		
	
	(17) Figures are derived from dental registration data.
	(18) Figures for registered patients include a small proportion who may reside temporarily elsewhere in the UK.

Harbour Investment

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department has invested in (a) Portavogie Harbour, (b) Kilkeel Harbour and (c) Ardglass Harbour in each of the past three years.

Angela Smith: The Northern Ireland Fishery Harbour Authority is the non-departmental public body that has responsibility for the improvement, management and maintenance of the three Northern Ireland fishery harbours at Portavogie, Kilkeel and Ardglass.
	Capital development projects at the three harbours (ie projects which relate to development rather than routine maintenance) have been funded at a rate of 100 per cent. through the authority by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development under the Structural Funds programme 'Building Sustainable Prosperity' (BSP) and the Re-investment and Reform Initiative (RRI).
	The total amounts invested by way of awards of grant aid in (a) Portavogie Harbour, (b) Kilkeel Harbour, and (c) Ardglass Harbour in each of the past three years are as set out in the following table.
	
		
			   £ 
			 Harbour BSP RRI 
		
		
			 Portavogie   
			 2002–03 100,675.26 — 
			 2003–04 — — 
			 2004–05 796,415 — 
			
			 Kilkeel   
			 2002–03 284,104.24 4,086,047 
			 2003–04 — — 
			 2004–05 1,182,063 — 
			
			 Ardglass   
			 2002–03 148,882.04 — 
			 2003–04 — — 
			 2004–05 — — 
			
			 Composite award (all three ports) 
			 2002–03 — — 
			 2003–04 — — 
			 2004–05 26,921 — 
			 Total 2,539,060.54 4,086,047

Illegal Motor Fuel

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many roadside tests were carried out on motor vehicles to test for illegal petrol and diesel in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years in (a) urban and (b) rural regions.

John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
	The total number of roadside challenges of motor vehicles by HM Revenue and Customs for tests on the fuel being used is just one element of an integrated antifraud strategy on oils. The figures requested are contained in the table.
	These figures only relate to challenges made by H.M. Revenue and Customs (ex HM Customs and Excise) and do not include any challenges made by other enforcement agencies, which may have included a sight test of the vehicles fuel as part of their checks.
	
		
			  Challenges 
		
		
			 1999–2000 1,355 
			 2000–01 5,736 
			 2001–02 1,589 
			 2002–03 4,077 
			 2003–04 13,144 
		
	
	It is not possible to split this into urban or rural regions, as this data was not recorded.

Northern Bank Robbery

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been (a) questioned, (b) arrested and (c) detained in connection with the Northern bank robbery.

Shaun Woodward: The investigation into the Northern bank robbery is ongoing. To date no-one has been arrested or detained and subsequently interviewed by the Police Service of Northern Ireland in relation to the robbery.
	PSNI are working closely with An Garda Síochána on a number of aspects of the investigation into the Northern bank robbery. Progress has been made, and the Garda Commissioner has stated publicly that a large quantity of money recovered in raids in Cork was stolen from the Northern bank. PSNI are fully committed to bringing the perpetrators to justice and are confident of a successful outcome to the investigation.

Northern Bank Robbery

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many officers are working on the Northern Bank robbery case.

Shaun Woodward: The investigation into the Northern Bank robbery is ongoing and a dedicated team of detectives have been allocated to the case and are working closely with their counterparts in An Garda Síochána. PSNI are fully committed to bringing the perpetrators to justice and additional resources can be called upon as the inquiry evolves.
	The allocation of police staff resources is a matter for the Chief Constable.

Northern Bank Robbery

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much money has been recovered to date from the Northern Bank robbery.

Shaun Woodward: The investigation into the Northern Bank robbery is ongoing. To date the Police Service of Northern Ireland has recovered £50,000 of the proceeds from the Northern Bank robbery. In addition An Garda Síochána has recovered over £2.4 million which they believe to be from the Northern Bank robbery.

Public Bodies (Appointments)

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) Protestant, (b) Roman Catholic and (c) non-determined appointees there have been to (i) the Child Support Agency in Northern Ireland, (ii) general service grades of the Civil Service in Northern Ireland and (iii) the Northern Ireland Housing Executive in the last 12 months; and what percentage of appointees this represents in each case.

Angela Smith: Protestants and men are currently under-represented in positions in the administrative grades of the Northern Ireland Civil Service. To encourage applications from these groups advertisements for general service positions have included the following welcoming statement:
	"As Protestants and men are currently known to be under-represented amongst applicants for employment in this grade in the NICS, applications from the Protestant section of the community and from men would be particularly welcome."
	As part of current outreach measures, Recruitment Service attends careers events throughout Northern Ireland to encourage young people to consider a career in the Northern Ireland Civil Service. Officials from Department of Finance and Personnel have also met careers teachers from a predominantly Protestant catchment area in an initiative to ensure that careers in NICS are perceived in a positive way by young Protestant school leavers and that applications received are representative of the entire community.
	The following tables provide details of appointments for the year 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2005.
	
		Northern Ireland Civil Service
		
			  Protestant Roman Catholic Non-determined 
			 General service grades Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Total 
		
		
			 Permanent 661 44 825 55 9 0.6 1,495 
			 Temporary 161 45 190 53.5 4 1 355 
		
	
	Note:
	(These are overall figures for NICS and include appointments to the Child Support Agency.)
	
		Child Support Agency
		
			  Protestant Roman Catholic Non-determined 
			 General service grades Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Total 
		
		
			 Permanent 80 36.5 138 63 1 0.4 219 
			 Temporary 15 38.5 22 56.4 2 5 39 
		
	
	Note:
	(These appointments, included in the table above, are identified as appointments to the Child Support Agency.)
	
		Northern Ireland Housing Executive
		
			  Protestant Roman Catholic Non-determined 
			 General service grades Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage Total 
		
		
			 Appointees 119 39.3 145 47.8 39 12.9 303

Racially Motivated Crime

Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) hate crimes and (b) racially motivated crimes there have been within each district command unit in Northern Ireland over the last three years.

Shaun Woodward: The Police Service of Northern Ireland will record any incident perceived to have been committed against any person or property on the grounds of a particular persons ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, political opinion or disability, whether it amounts to a crime or not. These incidents are commonly referred to as hate crimes and take many forms, including, verbal abuse, physical assault, intimidation and damage to property.
	The tables provide statistics for racially motivated incidents and homophobic incidents. The statistics in relation to homophobic incidents are only available by District Command Unit for 2003–04 and 2004–05. The total figure for such incidents in 2002–03 was 35.
	Computerised recording of incidents where the motivation is perceived to be on the grounds of an individual's particular religion, political opinion, or disability will be available from April 2005.
	
		Number of homophobic incidents(28)—2002–03, 2003–04 and 2004–05
		
			 District command unit Homophobic incidents 2003–04 Homophobic incidents 2004–05 
		
		
			 Urban region:   
			 North Belfast 13 27 
			 South Belfast 15 28 
			 East Belfast 4 6 
			 West Belfast 0 4 
			 Castlereagh 1 4 
			 North Down 0 4 
			 Newtownabbey 0 9 
			 Antrim 0 4 
			 Carrickfergus 1 1 
			 Lisburn 11 5 
			 Larne 0 2 
			 Ards 0 0 
			 Total for region 45 94 
			
			 Rural region:  3 
			 Ballymena 1 4 
			 Ballymoney 0 5 
			 Coleraine 0 3 
			 Limavady 0 69 
			 Foyle 17 1 
			 Moyle 0 1 
			 Magherafelt 0 2 
			 Strabane 0 1 
			 Omagh 2 3 
			 Fermanagh 1 0 
			 Armagh 1 1 
			 Banbridge 1 1 
			 Craigavon 2 4 
			 Cookstown 0 1 
			 Down 0 2 
			 Newry and Mourne 1 1 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 0 102 
			 Total for region 26 102 
			   196 
			 Overall total 71  
		
	
	(28) Homophobic incidents include attempted murder, physical assault, verbal abuse/threat, attack on home, attack on property, graffiti and written material.
	
		Number of racial incidents(29)—2002–03, 2003–04 and 2004–05
		
			 District command unit Racial incidents 2002–03 Racial incidents 2003–04 Racial incidents 2004–05 
		
		
			 Urban region:
			 North Belfast 16 27 76 
			 South Belfast 58 147 159 
			 East Belfast 11 32 54 
			 West Belfast 0 11 13 
			 Castlereagh 8 10 12 
			 North Down 17 18 19 
			 Newtownabbey 18 18 15 
			 Antrim 0 4 23 
			 Carrickfergus 2 4 21 
			 Lisburn 6 16 28 
			 Larne 5 2 0 
			 Ards 0 0 25 
			 Total for region 141 289 445 
			 
			 Rural region:
			 Ballymena 6 37 52 
			 Ballymoney 2 3 8 
			 Coleraine 3 7 22 
			 Limavady 1 2 7 
			 Foyle 5 12 40 
			 Moyle 1 0 1 
			 Magherafelt 0 1 9 
			 Strabane 0 0 3 
			 Omagh 2 2 6 
			 Fermanagh 2 5 18 
			 Armagh 4 14 14 
			 Banbridge 0 2 1 
			 Craigavon 35 31 79 
			 Cookstown 14 11 16 
			 Down 1 5 8 
			 Newry and Mourne 2 11 15 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 7 21 69 
			 Total for region 85 164 368 
			 
			 Overall total 226 453 813 
		
	
	(29) Racial incidents include murder, physical assault, verbal abuse/threat, attack on home, attack on property, graffiti and written material.
	Note:
	A new method of recording these figures was introduced in 2004–05. The statistics issued by the Chief Constable are now aligned with Home Office practice and as a result the figures for 2004–05 are not directly comparable with the figures for 2002–03 and 2003–04.

Racially Motivated Crime

Peter Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been prosecuted for racism in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: Court prosecution data does not identify racism offences. The Police Service of Northern Ireland do not hold figures for the last five years. The table outlines the number of racially motivated crimes cleared by the police in 2004–05 (the first financial year for which data are available) and for the current financial year to date. A breakdown by clearance type is provided which includes the number of crimes cleared by way of a charge or summons.
	
		
			 Crime clearance method 1 April 2004 to 31 March 2005 1 April 2005 to 31 August 2005(30) 
		
		
			 Charge/summons 59 17 
			 Caution/informed warning  (including juvenile) 11 1 
			 No further police action(31) 31 27 
			 Total crimes cleared 101 45 
		
	
	(30) Part year.
	(31) Includes cases where complainant declined to prosecute, and where the suspected offender is under the age of criminal responsibility or has died.

Allergies

Nadine Dorries: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps the Government are taking to improve the (a) levels of awareness of and (b) information about allergies and related issues for (i) teachers, (ii) non-teaching classroom assistants and (iii) professionals who work in pre-schools; and if she will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: To assist all staff working in schools and early settings to support children with medical needs and manage their medicines, the Department jointly with the Department of Health published guidance "Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings" March 2005. The guidance includes a section on common conditions including anaphylaxis, though it is not a substitute for detailed medical advice. It is important that the needs of children are assessed on an individual basis and staff receive appropriate training and support from health professionals
	The guidance provides schools and early years settings with practical advice to help them put in place policies on managing medicines and to put in place effective management systems to support pupils with medical needs.

Asperger's Syndrome

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what steps she is taking to ensure that teachers are trained to provide appropriate support to children with Asperger's syndrome;
	(2)  if she will take steps to ensure that appropriate levels of behaviour support are provided for children with Asperger's syndrome;
	(3)  if she will take steps to ensure that each child diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome receives an assessment of needs from an educational psychologist at the time of diagnosis;
	(4)  if she will take steps to ensure that appropriate training and support is provided for teachers dealing with children with Asperger's syndrome.

Maria Eagle: Maintained schools and local authorities have statutory duties to identify and make suitable provision for all children with special educational needs (SEN), including those with Asperger's syndrome. Where necessary, local authorities have a duty to assess children's SEN and draw up SEN statements. These assessments, which do not need to wait until a child receives a diagnosis, must include advice from an educational psychologist. The SEN Code of Practice, which gives statutory guidance to schools, local authorities and others, and the assessments are in place to ensure that children with SEN receive the appropriate levels of support, including behaviour support.
	The Good Practice Guidance on autistic spectrum disorders (ASDs) (2002), published by the Departments for Education and Skills and Health, recommends that all those who provide for children with ASDs, including Asperger's syndrome, should have some knowledge and understanding of the disorders. In order to be awarded Qualified Teacher Status, all trainee teachers must demonstrate competences in SEN including that they know how to seek advice from specialists on less common types of SEN and that they can identify and support pupils who experience behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. Newly Qualified Teachers, during induction, must demonstrate they can plan effectively to meet the needs of pupils with SEN. For in-service training, all schools have a School Development Grant which they can use for purposes such as supporting professional development in SEN, including training in Asperger's syndrome, if they feel that is needed.
	Under the SEN strategy "Removing Barriers to Achievement" the Department has commissioned the Teacher Development Agency to carry out work to the value of £1.1 million over the period 2005–08 to strengthen teachers' SEN skills. This includes work to strengthen the SEN training infrastructure by creating a network of SEN tutors in order to encourage the sharing of expertise.

Asthma

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  what guidance she has issued to schools on dealing with students who have asthma; and what recent discussions she has had on this matter;
	(2)  what steps she is taking to ensure that each school has an asthma policy;
	(3)  what steps she is taking to ensure that all students with asthma are (a) encouraged and (b) enabled to take part in (i) school sports and (ii) other physical activity.

Jacqui Smith: In March 2005 jointly with the Department of Health, the Department published guidance "Managing Medicines in Schools and Early Years Settings" to help schools and their employers develop and put in place policies on the management of pupils' medicines and on supporting pupils with medical needs. However there is no legal requirement on local authorities or schools to have such policies in place. The guidance provides some basic information on some common conditions, including asthma, and encourages schools to develop an environment that is asthma friendly. In particular, the guidance recommends that all schools should have an asthma policy as an integral part of their policy on medicines and medical needs. The guidance also recommends all staff, particularly PE teachers, should have training or be provided with information about asthma once a year so that they can support children in all aspects of school life including physical activities when appropriate.

Bullying

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many cases of bullying were recorded in (a) primary schools and (b) secondary schools in Cumbria in each year since 1997; and what the average figures were for English local education authorities for each year.

Jacqui Smith: Data on bullying amongst children and young people is not collected centrally and there is no reliable basis for an estimate of prevalence. Bullying cases appear to be reported more often now than previously but we have no hard evidence that bullying is increasing or that it is affecting more children. Indeed, as children and young people increasingly feel safe at school to report bullying, and confident that it will be tackled effectively and sensitively, it is likely reporting will rise.
	However, any level of bullying is too high and we are determined to help schools tackle the problem. Our guidance pack "Bullying: Don't Suffer in Silence", the anti-bullying Charter and the anti-bullying website www.dfes.gov.uk/bullying offer detailed advice on preventing and addressing bullying.
	Data on bullying is not collected by local education authorities and, similarly, there is no reliable basis for an estimate of prevalence.

Children in Care

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children have left care on average over the last 10 years; and what percentage move directly into bed and breakfast accommodation.

Maria Eagle: The number of children who ceased to be looked after during the years ending 31 March 1995 to 31 March 2004 are shown in the following table. Information on the percentage of those who move directly into bed and breakfast accommodation is not collected centrally.
	
		Children who ceased to be looked after during the years ending 31 March 1995 to 2004 by age on ceasing(33)(34): England Numbers
		
			  1995(35) 1996(35) 1997(35) 1998(35) 1999(35) 
		
		
			 All children(34) 33,200 32,400 30,100 29,000 27,100 
			 Under 1 1,700 1,500 1,400 1,300 1,400 
			 1–4 6,100 5,900 5,300 5,000 4,700 
			 5–9 5,800 5,500 5,200 5,100 4,500 
			 10–15 10,900 10,800 10,000 9,500 9,100 
			 16 and over 8,700 8,600 8,200 8,100 7,400 
		
	
	
		Numbers
		
			  2000(35) 2001(35) 2002(35) 2003(35) 2004(36) 
		
		
			 All children(34) 26,700 25,000 25,400 24,300 25,300 
			 Under 1 1,300 1,300 1,300 1,200 1,300 
			 1–4 4,900 5,000 5,200 5,200 5,500 
			 5–9 4,300 4,000 4,200 4,000 4,300 
			 10–15 8,900 8,000 8,000 7,300 7,500 
			 16 and over 7,200 6,800 6,700 6,600 6,800 
		
	
	(33) Only the last occasion on which a child ceased to be looked after in the year has been counted
	(34) Figures exclude children looked after under an agreed series of short term placements
	(35) Figures are derived from the SSDA903 one-third sample survey
	(36) Figures are taken from the SSDA903 return, which in 1995–96,1996–97 and 2003–04 covered all children looked after.

Connexions Card

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much her Department is planning to spend on the Connexions card in (a) 2005–06, (b) 2006–07, (c) 2007–08 and (d) 2008–09; and if she will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: The amount budgeted in the Connexions Card contract is:
	
		
			  Amount (£ millions) 
		
		
			 (a) 2005–06 £14.949 
			 (b) 2006–07 £15.028 
			 (c) 2007–08 £15.185 
			 (d) 2008–09 £11.492 
		
	
	The aims and direction of Connexions Card are being changed in light of the Youth Opportunity Card announced in "Youth Matters". We will use experience of developing the Connexions Card to inform the development of the Youth Opportunities Card. A decision about the future of the Connexions Card will be made in the light of the evaluation of the Opportunity Card pilots.

Deprivation Indicators

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will list the 20 local authority wards with the (a) highest and (b) lowest proportions of children (i) receiving free school meals and (ii) leaving school at the minimum age.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is as follows:
	
		(i) (a) The 20 local authority wards with the highest proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals(37)
		
			 District Ward Pupils known to be eligible for FSM Total pupils Percentage of pupils eligible for FSM 
		
		
			 Liverpool Princes Park 1,365 2,063 66.2 
			 Tower Hamlets Spitalfields and Banglatown 747 1,139 65.6 
			 Wirral Bidston and St James 1,695 2,603 65.1 
			 Tower Hamlets East India and Lansbury 1,407 2,163 65.0 
			 Tower Hamlets Bromley-by-Bow 1,423 2,213 64.3 
			 Tower Hamlets Whitechapel 967 1,510 64.0 
			 Tower Hamlets Bethnal Green South 1,315 2,055 64.0 
			 Tower Hamlets St Dunstan's and Stepney Green 1,570 2,468 63.6 
			 Tower Hamlets Shadwell 1,115 1,767 63.1 
			 Liverpool Central 354 564 62.8 
			 Tower Hamlets Limehouse 1,143 1,829 62.5 
			 Manchester Ardwick 1,178 1,889 62.4 
			 Redcar and Cleveland Grangetown 731 1,177 62.1 
			 Manchester Moss Side 1,461 2,361 61.9 
			 Manchester Hulme 647 1,049 61.7 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne Westgate 445 722 61.6 
			 Tower Hamlets Millwall 837 1,362 61.5 
			 Liverpool Everton 1,340 2,195 61.0 
			 Tower Hamlets Bethnal Green North 998 1,639 60.9 
			 Liverpool Kirkdale 1,298 2,140 60.7 
		
	
	(37) Includes five to 15-year-olds attending maintained primary, secondary, CTCs, academies, special and non-maintained special.
	Source:
	Annual School Census 2005 Final.
	
		(b) The 20(38) local authority wards with the lowest proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals(39)
		
			 District Ward Pupils known to be eligible for FSM Total pupils Percentage of pupils eligible for FSM 
		
		
			 Stafford Milford 0 503 0.0 
			 Aylesbury Vale Edlesborough 0 401 0.0 
			 South Northamptonshire Chase 0 399 0.0 
			 North Kesteven Cranwell and Byard's Leap 0 377 0.0 
			 Wycombe Lacey Green, Speen and the Hampdens 0 360 0.0 
			 York Heworth Without 0 357 0.0 
			 Three Rivers Chorleywood East 0 313 0.0 
			 Durham Neville's Cross 0 294 0.0 
			 Harrogate Washburn 0 275 0.0 
			 East Dorset Colehill West 0 265 0.0 
			 Boston South 0 256 0.0 
			 South Kesteven Witham Valley 0 250 0.0 
			 Daventry Walgrave 0 250 0.0 
			 Test Valley Harewood 0 243 0.0 
			 South Northamptonshire Astwell 0 242 0.0 
			 Chiltern Austenwood 0 238 0.0 
			 South Kesteven Hillsides 0 224 0.0 
			 Wycombe Hambleden Valley 0 223 0.0 
			 Aylesbury Vale Bierton 0 217 0.0 
			 Bromsgrove Woodvale 0 215 0.0 
		
	
	(38) A further 30 wards have 0 pupils known to be eligible for FSM. The wards listed above are those with the greatest number of pupils known not to be eligible for FSM.
	(39) Includes five to 15-year-olds attending maintained primary, secondary, CTCs, academies, special and non-maintained special.
	Source:
	Annual School Census 2005 Final.
	(ii) The earliest that a young person can leave school is on the last Friday in June after they turn 16. There is no information available on how many pupils leave from this point in the academic year. The most readily available figures are for young people in post-compulsory education at the end of the calendar year.
	The 20 local authorities (LAs) with the (a) highest and (b) lowest percentages of 16-year-olds not in post-compulsory education or work based learning (WBL—e.g. apprenticeships) in 2003/04 are given in the following table. Participation estimates are not available below LA level or for individual inner London LAs.
	
		Table: Percentage of 16-year-olds not in education or WBL by LA, end 2003
		
			 Not in full-time education Not in education or WBL(40) 
			  Percentage  Percentage 
		
		
			 England 28 England 16 
			 Inner London(41) 25 Inner London(41) 18 
			 
			 20 highest:
			 Barnsley 41 Barnsley 27 
			 Rochdale 39 Wakefield 26 
			 Leeds 39 Thurrock 26 
			 South Tyneside 38 Rochdale 25 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 38 Leeds 25 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 37 Derby 23 
			 Salford 37 Birmingham 23 
			 Wigan 37 Peterborough 23 
			 Doncaster 37 Southampton 23 
			 Wakefield 37 Medway 23 
			 Derby 37 Torbay 23 
			 Sandwell 37 Redcar and Cleveland 22 
			 Durham 36 Oldham 22 
			 Blackpool 36 Salford 22 
			 Kirklees 36 Doncaster 22 
			 Dudley 36 North East Lincolnshire 22 
			 Hartlepool 35 Telford and Wrekin 22 
			 Sunderland 35 Southend-on-Sea 22 
			 Oldham 35 St Helens 21 
			 St Helens 35 Tameside 21 
			 20 lowest:
			 Wiltshire 22 Cumbria 11 
			 Worcestershire 21 East Riding of Yorkshire 11 
			 Barnet 21 Warwickshire 11 
			 Croydon 21 Bedfordshire 11 
			 Reading 21 Hertfordshire 11 
			 Merton 20 Kingston upon Thames 11 
			 Surrey 19 Oxfordshire 11 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 19 Surrey 11 
			 Hertfordshire 18 Cambridgeshire 10 
			 Ealing 18 Brighton and Hove 10 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 18 North Yorkshire 9 
			 Enfield 17 Rutland 9 
			 Brent 16 Brent 9 
			 Kingston upon Thames 16 Harrow 8 
			 Waltham Forest 16 Wokingham 8 
			 Wokingham 16 Bath and North East Somerset 8 
			 Rutland 14 Enfield 7 
			 Harrow 14 Redbridge 7 
			 Redbridge 12 Richmond upon Thames 7 
			 Richmond upon Thames 11 Waltham Forest 7 
		
	
	(40) Total of all full-time and part-time education and WBL, less WBL provision in education institutions.
	(41) Inner London LAs have been excluded from this analysis, as only total figures are available.
	Source:
	This information is taken training by 16 and 17-year-olds in from the latest Statistical First Release "Participation in education and each local area in England".

Dyslexia

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many candidates received extra time due to dyslexia while sitting (a) GCSE and (b) GCE A/AS level examinations in 2003–04.

Jacqui Smith: This data is not collected by the Department because the figures available for the number of candidates who received extra time while sitting GCSE and GCE A/AS level examinations is not broken down by disability or qualification.

Foreign Languages

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to increase the numbers of pupils learning a foreign language at (a) primary and (b) secondary level.

Geraldine Smith: In March 2005 the Secretary of State for Education and Skills announced £115 million "Boost for Modern Foreign Languages", providing support for language teaching and learning for this and the next 2 years.
	For primary schools the funding will provide continuing support for initial and existing teacher training as well as training for support staff. To date we have trained 1,200 new primary teachers with a specialism in languages. Next month we will publish in hard copy and online our Key Stage 2 Framework for Languages, which sets out learning objectives for the four years of Key Stage 2. It will be supported by training, guidance and a planning tool.
	The funding will support new approaches for teaching and learning for 11–18 year olds, including alternative qualifications and vocational options at Key Stage 4 which will provide more flexibility for pupils in their studies. We have expanded the list of qualifications that count towards performance table scores to include more language qualifications.
	The funding will also allow language colleges to extend the role they play in supporting local primary and secondary schools in delivering language programmes. Last month the new languages recognition scheme, the Languages Ladder, became available nationally. The scheme can be used by learners of all ages and is available in eight languages. The scheme differs from existing approaches to assessment in that there are separate qualifications in each language for reading, writing, listening and speaking. To date more than 250 centres—including local authorities and Specialist Language Colleges—have registered to take part in the scheme.

Free School Meals (Meriden)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many schoolchildren in Meriden are eligible for free school meals; and what the take-up has been in each year since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is shown in the table.
	
		Maintained nursery, primary and secondary schools(43): school meal arrangements(44)—Meriden parliamentary constituency 1997–2005—Position in January each year
		
			  Maintained nursery and primary 
			  Number on roll Number of pupils taking free school meals(45) Percentage of pupils taking free school meals(45) Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals Percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 
		
		
			 1997 11,870 2,196 18.5 2,554 21.5 
			 1998 12,264 1,967 16.0 2,331 19.0 
			 1999 12,508 1,817 14.5 2,208 17.7 
			 2000 12,288 1,686 13.7 2,208 18.0 
			 2001 12,261 1,555 12.7 2,169 17.7 
			 2002 11,872 1,487 12.5 1,858 15.7 
			 2003 11,587 1,354 11.7 1,776 15.3 
			 2004 11,238 1,315 11.7 1,758 15.6 
			 2005 11,096 1,242 11.2 1,689 15.2 
		
	
	
		
			  Maintained secondary 
			  Number on roll Number of pupils taking free school meals(45) Percentage of pupils taking free school meals(45) Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals Percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals 
		
		
			 1997 6,712 916 13.6 1,286 19.2 
			 1998 6,820 857 12.6 1,284 18.8 
			 1999 6,960 814 11.7 1,183 17.0 
			 2000 7,278 843 11.6 1,289 17.7 
			 2001 7,413 837 11.3 1,369 18.5 
			 2002 7,516 786 10.5 1,213 16.1 
			 2003 7,621 794 10.4 1,224 16.1 
			 2004 7,611 786 10.3 1,276 16.8 
			 2005 7,444 783 10.5 1,241 16.7 
		
	
	(43) Includes middle schools as deemed.
	(44) Prior to 2003 "Number on roll" includes all full-time and part-time pupils who are sole registered, excluding boarding pupils. Due to underlying changes in data collection, this coverage was extended to also include all pupils with dual (main) registration and boarding pupils from 2003.
	(45) Based upon school level numbers of pupils who had a free school meal on 20 January 2005.

Grandparents

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will make it her policy to introduce an allowance for grandparents who are permanent carers for their grandchildren where the parents are unable to care for the children.

Maria Eagle: Grandparents caring for children who are looked after by the local authority are already entitled to receive an allowance in the same way as any other foster carer.
	Where a child is not looked after by the local authority, grandparents may claim the same benefits and tax credits as any other carer of a child aged under 16 (including child benefit and child tax credits).
	If a child is determined to be "a child in need", following an assessment by a local authority in accordance with the framework for the Assessment of Children in Need and Their Families, the local authority may then provide support to meet those needs, in accordance with its responsibilities set out in section 17 of the Children Act 1989.
	Local authorities may also pay an allowance to grandparents who have a residence order in respect of a child that they are looking after.
	Where a child is orphaned or one parent has died and the other is missing, in prison (with at least two years to serve) or detained in hospital by the order of a court a carer may claim a guardian's allowance from the Inland Revenue.

Looked-after Children

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what plans she has to introduce nutrition standards for meals provided in (a) children's homes and (b) other accommodation for looked-after children.

Jacqui Smith: Standards and guidance already exist aimed at ensuring food provided to looked-after children in children's homes is of an adequate standard. The "National Minimum Standards for Children's Homes" under section 23(1) of the Care Standards Act 2000 require that
	"children are provided with adequate quantities of suitably prepared food and drink having regard to their needs and wishes, and have the opportunity to shop for and prepare their own meals".
	In addition, nutritional and practical guidelines were issued by The Caroline Walker Trust in conjunction with the Department of Health, Food Standards Agency and British Heart Foundation in "Eating well for looked-after children and young people". Early this year we issued Healthy Care publications with the National Children's Bureau. The publications include Healthy Care Briefings which address food and training materials for use with foster carers and residential social workers, to improve the understanding of the role of carers in promoting children's health and well-being.
	A review of all National Minimum Standards for children's services is planned and nutrition for looked after children will be considered as part of that exercise.

Looked-after Children

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research her Department has commissioned on the outcomes for looked-after children at various stages in their lives after they have left the care system; and if she will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: holding answer 14 October 2005
	"Transitional Support for Care Leavers: An Evaluation of Costs and Outcomes" is the most recent research commissioned by the Department on the outcomes for care leavers. The study, led by the university of York, investigated the plans and support for young people aged 16–19 who were in the process of leaving the care of seven local authorities. The study is currently being written up for publication and will be published in 2006. In addition, Professor Harriet Ward and her colleagues at Loughborough university are about to undertake a new research study, "Looking After Children: Cohort Studies". These cohort studies will follow up a sample of care leavers approximately two years after they have ceased to be looked after.

Ministerial Travel

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many air miles were accrued through departmental ministerial travel in 2004–05, broken down by Minister; how many were (a) foregone and (b) donated to charity, broken down by charity; and whether air miles accrued by officials were required to be (i) foregone and (ii) given to charity.

Maria Eagle: The information on the number of air miles accrued is not held centrally and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
	Ministerial travel is conducted in accordance with the "Ministerial Code" and "Travel by Ministers". Guidance for Ministers on the use of air miles is set out in the Ministerial Code. The guidance makes clear that air miles should be used only for official purposes or else foregone. However, if it is impracticable to use the benefits for Government travel, there is no objection to Ministers donating them to charity if this is permissible under the terms of the airline's scheme and the charity is one chosen by the airline.
	Similar rules are in place for officials.

Phonics Teaching

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  on what criteria her decision to review the teaching of phonics was based; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  if she will make a statement on proposed changes to the National Literacy Strategy.

Jacqui Smith: The Government are committed to promoting approaches to the teaching of literacy that draw upon the most reliable advice and evidence available. As part of this commitment and because of strong public debate about the teaching of reading, we asked Jim Rose to conduct a review of best practice in the teaching of early reading, including the place of phonics. This will provide independent advice to build on the success of the National Literacy Strategy (now part of the Primary National Strategy) and to help ensure even more children make progress with reading.
	During 2006, the Primary National Strategy will review the frameworks for teaching literacy and mathematics to ensure they reflect the most recent and relevant research and information. This work will be aligned with the development of the "Early Development and Learning Framework" to ensure a consistent approach from birth to age 11. The review of the Literacy Framework will draw on the findings of Jim Rose's review and on a wide-ranging consultation with practitioners and expert groups.

Pre-school Places

Paul Truswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many free (a) nursery and (b) pre-school places were available for (i) 3 and (ii) 4-year-olds in Pudsey in each of the last 10 years.

Beverley Hughes: All 4-year-olds have been entitled to a free early education place since 1998 and from April 2004 this entitlement was extended to all 3-year-olds. The free entitlement consists of a minimum of five two and a half hour sessions per week for 33 weeks of the year for six terms before statutory school age, which is the term following their fifth birthday.
	Some local authorities may additionally offer subsidised child care places but this information is not collected centrally.
	Figures for January 2005 show that all 4-year-old children receive some form of free entitlement. The figure for 3-years-olds is 96 per cent. This covers all maintained, private, voluntary and independent providers and represents 535,100 3-year-olds and 568,300 4-year-olds.
	Information on the number free nursery education places taken up by 3 and 4-year-olds in Pudsey parliamentary constituency area is only available for January 2004 and 2005. These figures are shown in the table. The available information for Leeds local education authority area since 1997 is also shown.
	The latest figures on early education places for 3 and 4-year-olds in England were published in Statistical First Release 43/2005 "Provision for children under five years of age in England—January 2005 (final)" in September, which is available on my Department's website www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/.
	
		Number of free nursery education places(48) taken up 3 and 4-year-olds, Leeds local authority
		
			  3-year-olds 4 year olds 
			 Position in January each year Maintained nursery and primary schools(49) Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers Total 3-year- olds Maintained nursery and primary schools(50) Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers Total 4-year-olds 
		
		
			 1997 6,100 n/a 6,100 n/a n/a (51)8,800 
			 1998 6,100 n/a 6,100 n/a n/a (51)8,900 
			 1999 6,200 n/a 6,200 n/a n/a (51)8,700 
			 2000 5,900 (52)1,800 7,700 n/a n/a (51)8,700 
			 2001 5,600 (52)1,800 7,400 n/a n/a (51)8,400 
			 2002 5,400 (52)2,000 7,400 7,400 (51)800 8,200 
			 2003 5,200 (52)2,000 7,200 7,300 (53)870 8,100 
			 2004 4,900 (54)2,100 7,000 7,100 (55)870 8,000 
			 2005 4,900 (54)2,200 7,100 6,700 (55)820 7,600 
		
	
	n/a = not available.
	(48) Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 or 100 as appropriate.
	(49) Headcount of children aged three at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Annual Schools' Census.
	(50) Headcount of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Annual Schools' Census.
	(51) Part-time equivalent number of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Nursery Education Grant data collection exercise.
	(52) Part-time equivalent number of children aged three at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Nursery Education Grant data collection exercise.
	(53) Part-time equivalent number of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Early Years Census supplementary data collection exercise and the Annual Schools' Census.
	(54) Part-time equivalent number of children aged three at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Early Years Census and the Annual Schools' Census.
	(55) Part-time equivalent number of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Early Years Census and the Annual Schools' Census.
	
		Number of free nursery education places(56) taken up by 3 and 4-year-olds, Pudsey parliamentary constituency
		
			  3-year-olds 4-year-olds 
			 Position in January each year Maintained nursery and primary schools(57) Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers(58) Total 3-year-olds Maintained nursery and primary schools(59) Other maintained and private, voluntary and independent providers(60) Total 4-year-olds 
		
		
			 2004 670 320 990 1,100 140 1,200 
			 2005 620 410 1,030 990 160 1,100 
		
	
	(56) Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 or 100 as appropriate.
	(57) Headcount of children aged three at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Annual Schools' Census.
	(58) Part-time equivalent number of children aged three at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Early Years Census and the Annual Schools' Census.
	(59) Headcount of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Annual Schools' Census.
	(60) Part-time equivalent number of children aged four at 31 December in the previous calendar year from the Early Years Census and the Annual Schools' Census.
	Changes in pupil figures may arise from changes to the underlying population in the local education authority area and other factors. However, my Department doesn't publish population figures for individual age cohorts at sub-national level because of the unreliability of the underlying population estimates. The Office for National Statistics publish sub-national population estimates in five-year age bands.

Schools

David Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children were left without a place in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools (i) at the beginning of the 2005–06 academic year and (ii) in each year since 1997.

Jacqui Smith: This data is not collected centrally. Individual local authorities may have information. Secondary co-ordination has eliminated multiple offers of places so that more children have been offered a secondary school place on the national offer date compared with the same stage in the process in previous years.

Schools

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of children in the Waverley borough council area left school at the minimum age in each of the last five years, broken down by ward.

Jacqui Smith: The earliest that a young person can leave school is on the last Friday in June after they turn 16. There is no information available on how many pupils leave from this point in the academic year. The most readily available figures are for young people in post-compulsory education at the end of the calendar year.
	The percentage of 16-year-olds not in post-compulsory education or work based learning (WBL—e.g. apprenticeships) in Surrey local authority (LA) is given in the table. Figures are provided for 1999/2000 to 2003/04 (the latest available). Participation estimates are not available below LA level.
	
		Participation by 16-year-olds in Surrey LA Percentage
		
			 As at end of the calendar year: 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003(61) 
		
		
			 Full-time education 82 83 81 81 81 
			 Work based learning (WBL) 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Part-time education 3 3 3 4 4 
			 Total in education and WBL(62) 88 89 87 88 89 
			   
			 Not in full-time education 18 17 19 19 19 
			 Not in education or WBL 12 11 13 12 11 
		
	
	(61) Provisional.
	(62) Total of all full-time and part-time education and WBL, less WBL provision in education institutions.
	This information is taken from the latest Statistical First Release "Participation in education and training by 16 and 17-year-olds in each local area in England".

Schools

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much capital funding was available to schools in (a) 2004–05 and (b) 2005–06, broken down by (i) modernisation funding, (ii) devolved formula capital, (iii) the Targeted Capital Fund, (iv) basic need funding, (iv) the School Access Initiative, (vi) Building Schools for the Future, (vii) expansion of popular and successful secondary schools and (viii) total capital funding; and what forecast she has made of funding in each category in (A) 2006–07 and (B) 2007–08.

Jacqui Smith: The information requested is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 £ million 
			  Allocation Forecast allocation 
			 Description 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 
		
		
			 Modernisation 852 602 602 602 
			 Devolved Formula Capital 774 805 1,000 1,050 
			 Targeted Capital Fund(63) 186 200 275 550 
			 Building Schools for the Future(64) 1,121 2,118 2,177 2,240 
			 Successful and Popular Schools(65) 1 1 n/a n/a 
			 Other(66) 1,939 1,789 1,701 1,823 
			 Total Capital Funding 4,873 5,515 5,755 6,265 
		
	
	(63) The forecast Targeted Capital Fund figures for 2006–07 and 2007–08 represent a total allocation of £1.1 billion, phased over three years. The balance is to be allocated in 2008–09.
	(64) The Building Schools for the Future figures include PFI credits. The forecast figures for 2006–07 and 2007–08 represent available budget.
	(65) There is no forecast for Successful and Popular Schools as this is a demand led programme. The figures in the table represent incentive funding provided by the Department.
	(66) The Other line includes the following programmes; Voluntary Aided Schools, local authorities' Basic Need, Other ICT, Academies, smaller programmes.

Special Educational Needs

Richard Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much funding has been allocated to special needs provision in Suffolk in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: The information requested is contained within the following table:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Budgeted net expenditure on the provision of education for children with special educational needs 
		
		
			 2001–02 23,452,000 
			 2002–03 29,012,000 
			 2003–04 32,374,000 
			 2004–05 41,529,000 
			 2005–06(69) 43,991,000 
		
	
	(69) The data is taken from section 52 Budget 2005–06 data is subject to change by the local authority.
	Notes:
	1. Includes planned expenditure on the provision for pupils with statements and the provision for non-statemented pupils with SEN, support for inclusion, inter authority recoupment, fees for pupils at independent special schools and abroad, educational psychology service, local authority functions in relation to child protection, therapies and other health related services, parent partnership, guidance and information, the monitoring of SEN provision and inclusion administration, assessment and co-ordination. Also included is the funding delegated to primary and secondary schools identified as "notional SEN" and the individual schools budget (ISB) for special schools.
	2. The ISB for special schools will include some general education costs for pupils with SEN in addition to those costs specifically for SEN while the figures recorded against "notional SEN" are only indicative of the amount that might be spent by schools on SEN. In 2005–06, Suffolk local authority also budgeted £5 million for SEN transport expenditure but this is not included in the above table as figures are not available prior to 2005–06.
	3. Data reported in cash terms as reported by Suffolk local authority as at 18 October 2005 and are rounded to the nearest thousand pounds.

Special Educational Needs

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to ensure adequate provision for special educational needs.

Maria Eagle: Local authorities have important and extensive duties to identify, assess and make provision for children with special educational needs and to keep their arrangements for doing so under review. Schools, early education settings, local authorities and others must have regard to the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice, which gives guidance on carrying out their statutory duties under the 1996 Education Act.
	The Government published in February 2004 their SEN strategy "Removing Barriers to Achievement", which sets out a long-term programme to improve SEN provision and to improve outcomes for children and young people with SEN. As part of this strategy, the Department is promoting more consistent practice through a team of national SEN advisers. The Advisers are providing support and challenge to local authorities on key SEN issues, including the management of provision for children with special needs.

Teachers

David Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the criteria are for entry to the Graduate Training Programme for teachers; and whether previous teaching experience and qualifications are taken into account when considering applications.

Jacqui Smith: The conditions of entry to the Graduate Teacher Programme are the same as those for entrants to all courses of initial teacher training in England. These are laid down in the document "Qualifying to teach: Professional Standards for Qualified Teacher Status and Requirements for Initial Teacher Training" which can be seen at www.tda.gov.uk/qualifyingtoteach
	Teaching experience is desirable before entry to training, but is not a statutory entry requirement. Teaching and school experience is taken into account by employment-based and conventional teacher training providers when they make decisions about whom they accept onto programmes.

Teachers

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to increase the number of male teachers working in early years educational provision.

Jacqui Smith: We are fully committed to increasing the diversity of the early years workforce and, in particular, to increasing the proportion who are men. We made this very clear in our 10-year strategy for child care, "Choice for parents: the best start for children" published last December and again in our Children's Workforce Strategy published in April this year.
	We work closely with local authorities and other key partners such as Jobcentre Plus to support employers in recruiting early years workers. This includes several initiatives to help boost the number of men in the workforce. For example, earlier this year we undertook regional press and radio advertising which used positive images of men working in the sector. We have produced a video for men considering working in early years. We have also commissioned the Daycare Trust to work with local authorities to enhance their efforts to promote the recruitment of men in their local labour markets.

Teachers

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many secondary school teachers teach the subject in which they undertook a degree; and how many teach a subject different from their degree qualification, broken down by degree subject.

Jacqui Smith: The information is not available in the format requested. The following table shows the highest qualification held by secondary school teachers in the subjects that they taught in 2002, the latest year for which data are available.
	
		Teachers in serviceFull-time teachers in maintained secondary schools—Highest post A level qualification(75)held in the subjects they teach(76) to year groups 7–13 EnglandPercentages(77)
		
			  Degree(78) BEd PGCE Cert. Ed. Other qual. No qual. Total teachers (000) 
		
		
			 Mathematics 42±3 15±2 9±2 7±1 2±1 24±2 28.2 
			 English 51±3 15±2 7±1 6±l 1±1 20±2 29.4 
			 Combined/General Science 62±3 12±2 10±2 4±1 1±1 11±2 28.3 
			 Biology(79) 71±5 7±3 11±4 3±2 -±1 7±3 5.6 
			 Chemistry(79) 72±5 6±3 12±4 1±1 1±1 7±3 5.2 
			 Physics(79) 63±6 11±4 15±4 3±2 -±- 8±3 4.7 
			 Other Science(79) 10±6 4±4 5±4 -±- -±- 80±8 1.6 
			 French 54±3 7±2 10±2 3±1 2±1 23±3 16.0 
			 German 47±5 6±3 13±4 1±1 2±1 30±5 6.9 
			 Spanish 37±7 8±4 19±6 -±- 3±2 33±7 3.6 
			 Other Modern Languages 18±8 -±- 9±7 -±- 3±4 71±10 1.4 
			 Design and Technology(80) 26±3 20±3 7±2 21±3 2±1 24±3 20.9 
			 ICT (80)(81) 13±2 6±1 8±2 2±1 3±1 69±3 18.9 
			 Other/Combined Technology(80) 30±10 13±8 16±7 18±9 2±3 20±9 1.6 
			 Business Studies 30±5 11±4 9±3 4±2 3±2 43±5 6.5 
			 Classics 33±7 -±- 2±4 2± -±- 63±7 1.0 
			 History 57±4 9±2 6±2 6±2 -±- 23±3 13.7 
			 Religious Education 22±3 8±2 8±2 4±1 2±1 57±4 14.2 
			 Geography 53±4 9±2 6±2 5±2 1±1 25±3 13.7 
			 Other Social Studies 35±5 6±3 2±2 2±1 -±1 54±6 4.9 
			 Combined Arts/Humanities/Social Studies 5±3 4±2 7±3 1±1 1±1 83±5 5.3 
			 Music 59±5 15±4 5±2 6±3 2±2 13±4 6.3 
			 Drama 25±4 10±3 12±3 6±2 2±1 45±5 8.1 
			 Art and Design 54±4 10±3 7±2 9±3 1±1 20±4 9.3 
			 Physical Education 25±3 31±3 6±2 13±2 2±1 22±2 21.4 
			 Careers Education 2±2 1±2 3±3 4±4 3±4 87±7 1.5 
			 PSHE(81) 1±- 1±- 2±1 1±- -±- 95±1 61.4 
			 General Studies 1±1 2±1 1±1 -±1 -±- 95±2 7.1 
			 Citizenship 2±1 1±1 2±1 -±1 -±- 94±2 9.0 
			 Other   32.8 
			 Total(76)(77) 33±- 10±- 7±- 5±- 1±- 44±- 388.4 
		
	
	(75) Where a teacher has more than one post A level qualification in the same subject, the qualification level is determined by the highest level reading from left (Degree) to right (Other Qual.). For example, teachers shown under PGCE have a PGCE but not a degree or BEd. in the subject, while those with a PGCE and a degree are shown only under Degree.
	(76) Teachers are counted once against each subject which they are teaching.
	(77) Confidence intervals exist around the estimated percentages due to the sample size of the survey.
	(78) Includes higher degrees but excludes BEds.
	(79) Teachers qualified in combined/general science are treated as qualified to teach biology, chemistry, or physics. Teachers qualified in biology, chemistry or physics are treated as qualified to teach combined/general science.
	(80) Teachers qualified in other/combined technology are treated as qualified to teach design and technology or information and communication technology. Teachers qualified in design and technology or information and communication technology are treated as qualified to teach other/combined technology.
	(81) Information and Communication Technology is abbreviated as ICT and Personal Social and Health Education is abbreviated as PSHE.
	(82) 'Other' not included in total percentages.
	- equals zero or less than 0.5.
	Source:
	Secondary Schools Curriculum and Staffing Survey 2002
	A copy of this table is available as Table 24 of the Statistics of Education, School Workforce in England Volume, 2004 edition which has been placed in the House of Commons Library. Alternatively it may be accessed at the following URL:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/VOL/v000554/index. shtml.
	The table does not give an indication of the proportion of subject periods delivered by teachers with a degree in that subject or a related subject.
	Table 25 of the same publication provides the proportion of subject periods taught by highest level of qualification.

Academic Medical Centres

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on progress on identifying sites for the proposed academic medical centres.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 20 October 2005
	The proposals set out in the Department's publication "Best Research for Best Health: a new national health research strategy", have been the subject of a public consultation. The consultation period ended on 21 October 2005. A summary of the responses made to the Department's proposals and an outline of the next steps in the process, will be published by 30 November 2005.

Anaemia

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of anaemia among under-18s were diagnosed in England in each of the last five years.

Caroline Flint: The information requested is shown in the table. Data is for all national health service hospitals in England.
	
		Finished consultant episodes (FCEs) for anaemia for patients under 18-years-old
		
			  FCE 
		
		
			 1999–2000 17,102 
			 2000–01 16,636 
			 2001–02 17,264 
			 2002–03 17,777 
			 2003–04 17,398 
		
	
	Source:
	Hospital episode statistics, Health and Social Care Information Centre.

Authority Boundaries

John Mann: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many strategic health authorities are proposing new primary care trust boundaries that extend beyond the geographic boundary of the strategic health authority.

Liam Byrne: Following the publication of "Commissioning a Patient led NHS" on 28 July, strategic health authorities (SHAs) will be submitting proposals to the Department for the configuration of their primary care trusts (PCTs) and for SHAs based on criteria set out in the document. The Department will consider the proposals and any proposed changes will require formal public consultation for three months from December. I am therefore unable to say what the configuration of PCTs and the new SHAs will be until the outcome of the statutory public consultation is known.

Avian Influenza

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are in place to ensure that all English residents are protected in the case of an outbreak of avian influenza.

Caroline Flint: We are committed to ensuring that the Government is as prepared as possible for a flu pandemic.
	On 19 October, we published the revised "UK Influenza Pandemic Contingency Plan", which updates the version published in March 2005. The plan provides a framework which seeks to reduce the health impact of a pandemic and the possible disruption it may cause to essential services and people's daily lives.
	A key part of our preparedness plans is the purchase of 14.6 million treatment courses of antiviral drugs—enough to treat the quarter of the population who may fall ill in a pandemic. We are also working closely with manufacturers to ensure that the United Kingdom will be able to obtain a specific pandemic vaccine when one becomes available and have issued a tender for 'sleeping contracts' which will ensure we receive vaccine as early as possible.
	The World Health Organisation considers the UK to be one of the best prepared countries in the world. However, we are continuing to develop our contingency plans to ensure that they are up to date and comprehensive.

Cancer

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what restrictions exist on (a) the advertising of cures for cancer and (b) the reporting of items relating to cancer; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Restrictions on advertising cures of cancer are detailed in section 4(l) (a) of the 1939 Cancer Act
	"No person shall take any part in the publication of any advertisement—(a) containing an offer to treat any person for cancer, or to prescribe any remedy therefore, or to give any advice in connection with the treatment thereof".
	There are no such specific restrictions regarding the reporting of items relating to cancer.

Contagious Diseases

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list occasions since 1997 when highly contagious diseases have been identified in the UK as having originated abroad, broken down by country of origin.

Caroline Flint: There is no agreed definition of the term "highly contagious". The following cases of highly contagious diseases, have been reported to the Health Protection Agency in England and Wales since 1997.
	There was one confirmed case of severe acute respiratory syndrome in 2003, whose infection was acquired in Hong Kong.
	There were two confirmed cases of Lassa fever since 1997, both of whom acquired their infection in Sierra Leone, one in 2000, and the other in 2003.
	Since 1997, there have been 10 laboratory confirmed cases of cholera each year, with around a further 30 cases notified but not confirmed.
	There have been laboratory confirmed cases of shigellos, which all came from abroad. These are shown in the table.
	
		
			  Shigella boydii Shigella dysenteriae 
		
		
			 1997 79 49 
			 1998 75 43 
			 1999 70 42 
			 2000 56 26 
			 2001 52 31 
			 2002 54 23 
			 2003 94 50 
			 2004 113 53 
		
	
	There have been laboratory confirmed cases of typhoid from abroad, which are shown in the table.
	
		
			  S. Typhi 
		
		
			 1997 99 
			 1998 82 
			 1999 94 
			 2000 109 
			 2001 97 
			 2002 101 
			 2003 118 
			 2004 121 
		
	
	The information regarding country of origin is not held as a matter of routine.

First Aid Advice (Intoxication)

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps she is taking to publicise first aid advice to young people on how they should treat other young people who may be intoxicated.

Jacqui Smith: I have been asked to reply.
	There is scope in the Personal Social and Health Education framework for schools to explore safety and emergency procedures as part of the curriculum. At Key Stage 3, the framework suggests pupils should be taught
	"basic emergency procedures and where to get help and support".
	At Key Stage 4 pupils should be taught to
	"develop skills to cope with emergency situations that require basic aid procedures, including resuscitation techniques".

Food Standards Agency

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people followed the proceedings of the meeting of the Food Standards Agency held on 15 September via the internet; what questions were raised by e-mail during that meeting; by whom the questions were raised; what answers were given; and whether she has any plans to extend provision for internet and e-mail participation in meetings and discussions of her Department and the agencies for which she is responsible.

Caroline Flint: holding answer 17 October 2005
	As part of the Food Standards Agency's (FSA) commitment to openness and transparency, all its open board meetings are webcast on the internet as a matter of course. Decisions on whether to webcast other meetings are taken on a case by case basis. The board meeting held on 15 September was viewed live via the internet by at least 368 people. Other people may have watched the recording subsequently. One question was submitted by email from Chris Whitehouse of Consumers for Health Choice: 'Assuming that the Board adopts the recommendations under Item 5 in relation to the Food Supplements Directive, what specific strategy do they have for achieving the objectives specified'. This question was addressed in the question and answer session by the chief executive, who said that, if the FSA's advice was accepted by Ministers, the FSA would be seeking to influence those officials in the commission drafting the proposals on which the negotiations would be based. The full answer can be viewed at:
	www.flyonthewall.com/FlyBroadcast/FSA/LondonBoard0905/.
	The Department conducted its first webcast on 31 May 2005, World No Tobacco Day. The webcast, aimed at policy-makers and local groups that help smokers to quit, included coverage of the international conference held with the World Health Organisation supported by a short film showing a local stop smoking support group. This initiative was an important first step in broadening access to information and exploiting online channels. The Department's next webcast will be a first for Government. In the spirit of open government, the Department will broadcast policy making, live, from the deciding national event in the "Your Health, Your Care, Your Say" consultation on improving community health and care services in Birmingham on 29 October. This webcast will give the public, national health service staff, charities and special interest groups, the chance to see 1,000 people debating and shaping future policy on health care outside hospitals. The webcast will be accessible from the Department's website live on the day and is likely to be available via the website for some time thereafter to enable the outcome to be compared with the resulting White Paper when this is published at the turn of the year.

General Practice

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations she has received from organisations representing patients about the inability to book general practitioner appointments in advance; and if she will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: Representations have been received both from organisations and from individuals about this matter. We have made clear that it is unacceptable that some practices are continuing to deny patients the opportunity to book an appointment with a general practitioner in advance. As my noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health (Lord Warner) announced on 7 September, we are therefore now taking steps to ensure that patients are offered more flexible access, including the opportunity to book ahead. At the same time, we are also now asking patients and national health service staff what more needs to be done to improve access as part of the "Your Health, Your Care, Your Say" public consultation.

Health Services (Essex)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of delayed transfers of care there have been in (a) Southend-on-Sea and (b) Basildon hospitals in each of the last three years.

Rosie Winterton: The Department collects information on the number of cases of delayed transfer at national health service trust level. The latest data on the number of cases of delayed transfers of care at Basildon and Thurrock General Hospital NHS Trust and Southend Hospitals NHS Trust is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Basildon and Thurrock General Hospitals NHS Trust Southend Hospitals NHS Trust 
		
		
			 2002–03 29 43 
			 2003–04 41 37 
			 2004–05 20 17 
			 2005–06 25 20 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. These figures are based on a snapshot taken on the last typical Thursday in the year.
	2. 2005–06 data is the latest available.
	Source:
	SitReps.

Health Services (Essex)

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many occupational therapists have been employed within the Essex strategic health authority in each of the last three years.

Rosie Winterton: The numbers of occupational therapists that have been employed within the Essex strategic health authority (SHA) area in each of the last three years are shown in the table.
	
		National health service hospital and community health services: qualified occupational therapists in the Essex SHA area by organisation as at 30 September in each specified year Headcount
		
			  Organisation code 2002 2003 2004 
		
		
			 Essex SHA total Q03 454 460 447 
			  
			 Primary care trusts (PCTs) 
			 Billericay, Brentwood and Wickford PCT 5GP 13 13 10 
			 Castle Point and Rochford PCT 5JP 1 1 (85)— 
			 Colchester PCT 5GM 29 44 27 
			 Epping Forest PCT 5AJ 40 50 55 
			 Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust RDE 32 30 32 
			 Maldon and South Chelmsford PCT 5GL 12 19 14 
			 Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust RQ8 27 28 26 
			 New Possibilities NHS Trust RDH 58 (86)— (86)— 
			 North Essex Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust RRD 59 86 88 
			 South Essex Partnership NHS Trust RWN 82 81 105 
			 Southend Hospital NHS Trust RAJ 19 26 27 
			 Southend-on-Sea PCT 5AK 18 19 17 
			 Tendring PCT 5AH 4 7 4 
			 Thurrock PCT 5GQ 60 54 36 
			 Witham Braintree and Halstead Care Trust TAG (85)— 2 6 
		
	
	(85) Zero.
	(86) Not applicable.
	Source:
	Health and Social Care Information Centre non-medical workforce census.

Hypertension

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the incidence of hypertension has been in each year since 1997.

Liam Byrne: Information is not available in exactly the form requested. The Health Survey for England records annual prevalence data, which is shown in the table.
	
		Prevalence of high blood pressure by survey year. All adults aged 16 and over with a valid blood pressure reading and data on medication 
		
			  Percentage Sample size 
		
		
			 1998 36.5 11,884 
			 1999 — — 
			 2000 36.2 5,598 
			 2001 37.5 10,653 
			 2002 35.4 4,829 
			 2003 34.4 9,183 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Because the 1999 survey focused on the health of ethnic minorities, no results are available for the general population in England.
	2. The survey defines hypertension as high blood pressure when above the threshold of 140/90 mmHg or "on treatment".
	Source:
	Health Survey for England.

Influenza Vaccine

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance she has issued on the most effective time during the year for winter influenza vaccines to be administered to at-risk groups.

Caroline Flint: Guidance issued in "Immunisation against Infectious Disease", the "Green book", and in national health service information materials recommends that flu vaccine be given before the main flu season. We suggest that the vaccine is offered from September to early November. However, it can be given up until the time that the flu virus starts to circulate.

Mental Health

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps the Government is taking to support children who care for their mentally ill parent.

Rosie Winterton: The Government have shown the importance it attaches to supporting children who care for parents with a mental illness, through the 1999 national service framework for mental health (NSFMH), the NHS Plan (2000), and the 2004 national service framework for children, young people and maternity services (NSFC).
	The NSFMH sets out national standards, future aims and priorities for mental health services in England over a 10-year period. Specifically, standard six, "Caring about carers", identifies the needs of all individuals who provide substantial care for a person on a care plan approach. This is available on the Department's website at: www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/09/05/66/04090566.pdf.
	The NSF is also supported by the NHS Plan (2000) which sets a target of having 700 carer support workers in place by the end of 2004: by the end of March 2005, 654 (more than 93 per cent., of this target) carer support workers were in post, which represents a very significant achievement.
	Standard two of the NSFC—Supporting parenting—recognises that special circumstances exist in some families, including parental mental illness and where children may be unpaid carers. This NSF identifies the need for support to those children who are carers and is available on the Department's website at: www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/09/05/66/04090566.pdf.

Mental Health

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the Government have allocated to child and adolescent mental health services during each of the past three years; and how much it plans to allocate in each of the next three years.

Liam Byrne: The available information is shown in the table. These funds are in addition to the funding included in the general resources available to the national health service and local authorities for the development of child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS). CAMHS funding for the national health service in 2006–07 and 2007–08 has yet to be determined. CAMHS funding in 2008–09 and thereafter will be part of the forthcoming comprehensive spending review.
	
		CAMHS funding—2003–04 to 2007–08 £ million
		
			  Local authority revenue NHS revenue NHS capital 
		
		
			 2003–04 51.0 — — 
			 2004–05 67.0 20.0 20.0 
			 2005–06 90.5 50.0 20.0 
			 2006–07 90.5 — — 
			 2007–08 90.5 — — 
		
	
	Funding in 2006–07 and 2007–08 is subject to approval by Parliament.

NHS Prescription Costs

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS prescriptions were made (a) to all people and (b) to people aged over 60 years for (i) chlorpromazine (largactil), (ii) thioridazine, (iii) haloperidol (seranacem, haldol, dozic), (iv) promazine (sparine), (v) flupentixol (depixol, fluanxol), (vi) olanzapine (zyprexa), (vii) pericyazine (neulactil), (viii) risperidone (risperidol), (ix) sulpiride (dolmatil, sulpitil), (x) trifluoperazine (stealazine) and (xi) clozapine (cloxaril); and if she will estimate the cost to the NHS of prescribing each of them in that year.

Rosie Winterton: In 2004, the national health service in England prescribed antipsychotic medicines in the quantities shown in table one. The second column shows the total quantities prescribed for each medicine, aggregating all generic brands and strengths of each medicine. The third column shows the total number of prescriptions for these medicines issued to persons aged over 60 years.
	The information in the third column is based on a one in 20 sample of all exempt prescriptions identified by the Prescription Pricing Authority from those dispensed by community pharmacists, appliance contractors, dispensing doctors, and prescriptions submitted by prescribing doctors for items personally administered in England. This information is an estimate and is subject to sampling errors. Also included are prescriptions issued in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man but dispensed in England. The data does not cover drugs dispensed in hospitals, including mental health trusts.
	Table two shows the costs of each of these medicines to the NHS in England in 2004. These figures do not include any discounts over and above drug tariff rates, nor any dispensing costs or fees.
	
		Table 1: Antipsychotic medicines prescribed in England in 2004  Quantity (Thousand)
		
			  Total NHS prescriptions in England 
			 Name of medicine In 2004 In 2004 to patients aged over 60 
		
		
			 Chlorpromazine Hydrochloride 656 214.8 
			 Thioridazine 77 40.5 
			 Haloperidol 431 256.2 
			 Promazine Hydrochloride 182.5 116.1 
			 Flupentixol Hydrochloride 222.5 112.6 
			 Olanzapine 1,375.8 459 
			 Pericyazine 43.1 14.1 
			 Risperidone 1,228 579 
			 Sulpiride 213.3 82.9 
			 Trifluoperazine 420.9 209.2 
			 Clozapine 6.7 0.6 
		
	
	
		Table 2: Antipsychotic medicines prescribed in England in 2004
		
			 Name of medicine Cost to NHS (£000) 
		
		
			 Chlorpromazine Hydrochloride 1,389.4 
			 Thioridazine 151.1 
			 Haloperidol 1,997.1 
			 Promazine Hydrochloride 525.9 
			 Flupentixol Hydrochloride 812.2 
			 Olanzapine 109,862.8 
			 Pericyazine 417.6 
			 Risperidone 48,845.5 
			 Sulpiride 2,384.7 
			 Trifluoperazine 1,223.3 
			 Clozapine 742.4

Obesity

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many primary school pupils in (a) England, (b) London and (c) Kingston and Surbiton are identified as (i) overweight and (ii) obese.

Caroline Flint: The available information, taken from the Health Survey for England, is shown in the table. No specific figures are available for Kingston and Surbiton, but these areas are included in the figure for London.
	
		Prevalence of child overweight and obesity among English children aged five–10 by sex Percentage
		
			 Body mass index (BMI) status London Government office region  England 
		
		
			 Boys   
			 Overweight 7.5 14.6 
			 Obese 23.0 16.2 
			 Overweight including obese 30.5 30.8 
			 Girls   
			 Overweight 12.5 14.3 
			 Obese 16.3 13.3 
			 Overweight including obese 28.9 27.6 
			 Number of children surveyed 
			 Boys 76 634 
			 Girls 63 655 
		
	
	Note:
	UK National BMI percentile classification used to classify overweight and obesity in children.
	Source:
	Health Survey for England 2003

Public Health (Control of Disease) Act

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to review the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984.

Caroline Flint: holding answer 20 October 2005
	"Getting Ahead of the Curve", the infectious disease strategy published by the Chief Medical Officer in January 2002 made clear our intention of reviewing the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984.
	In preparation for the review, the Department has asked the Health Protection Agency (HPA) to consider how public health practitioners might make more effective use of the powers currently provided by the 1984 Act, and what difficulties practitioners find with the current powers and what changes might be desirable. We expect to receive the results of the first instalment of the HPA's work shortly, and will want to consider with the HPA at that stage when and in what form it would be appropriate to publish the results of its work.
	We will decide, in the light of work by the HPA and of other developments such as the World Health Organisation's adoption of new international health regulations, how to take the review forward. Our aim will be to consider whether and how the law could be modernised to ensure protection of the public while respecting the rights of the individual. If it seems that changes to the law would be desirable, we shall of course want to consult those affected before proceeding.

Ritalin

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many prescriptions for Ritalin and similar drugs have been made in each of the last 20 years.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 20 October 2005
	The information requested is shown in the table, which shows the total number of items dispensed in the community in England for Ritalin and similar drugs for the period 1991 to 2004.
	Prior to 1991, data was collected on a sample basis only, and this is not strictly comparable with the later data.
	
		Total number of items dispensed in the community in England since 1991 Number of items (Thousand)
		
			  Drug Name 
			  Concerta Equasym Metadate Methylphenidate HCL Ritalin Tranquilyn 
		
		
			 1991 — — — — 2.00 — 
			 1992 — — — 0.00 2.61 — 
			 1993 — — — 0.01 3.49 — 
			 1994 — — — 0.02 6.00 — 
			 1995 — — — 0.00 14.69 — 
			 1996 — — — 0.01 47.87 — 
			 1997 — — — 0.03 92.05 — 
			 1998 — — — 0.03 126.59 — 
			 1999 — — — 0.04 157.92 — 
			 2000 — 4.90 — 0.04 181.25 — 
			 2001 0.12 27.71 — 0.05 180.57 — 
			 2002 44.60 47.04 0.05 0.43 161.81 0.02 
			 2003 134.92 54.47 0.01 0.34 124.51 0.22 
			 2004 189.20 34.14 0.01 67.57 67.85 0.30 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Prescription information is taken from the prescription cost analysis (PCA) system, supplied by the Prescription Pricing Authority (PPA), and is based on a full analysis of all prescriptions dispensed in the community i.e. by community pharmacists and appliance contractors, dispensing doctors, and prescriptions submitted by prescribing doctors for items personally administered in England. Also included are prescriptions written in Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man but dispensed in England. The data do not cover drugs dispensed in hospitals, including mental health trusts, or private prescriptions.
	2. Prescriptions are written on a prescription form. Each single item written on the form is counted as a prescription item.
	Source:
	PCA, PPA.

Smoking

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of (a) the number of under-18s in England who are smokers and (b) the percentage of underage smokers who come from smoking households.

Caroline Flint: The data is not available in the requested form. Table one shows the estimated number of smokers, to the nearest hundred thousand, for the age groups 11–15 and 16–19. This uses the most recent data available.
	
		Table 1: Estimated number of smokers aged 11–15 and 16–19, England 2004
		
			 Age Estimated prevalence (percentage)(87)(88) Estimated population(89) Estimated number of smokers (nearest 100,000) Bases  UnweightedWeighted (000) 
		
		
			 11–15 9 3,252,238 300,000 9,618 n/a 
			 16–19 25 2,611,397 700,000 784 2,006 
		
	
	Note:
	Due to the small sample sizes for given age ranges in the General Household Survey (GHS), data is given for 16–19 rather than under 18s. This is the format of the reporting in the GHS.
	Sources:
	(87) NatCen/NFER Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England in 2004
	(88) Office for National Statistics (ONS) The General Household Survey 2003–04
	(89) ONS mid-year population estimates, 2004 (based on the 2001 census).
	77 per cent. of regular smokers aged 11–15 come from a smoking household. This is shown in table two.
	
		Table 2: Smoking status of secondary school children aged 11–15, by smoking status of household. England 2004 Percentage
		
			  Non-smoking household Smoking household Total Bases 
		
		
			 Not answered 47 53 100 81 
			 Regular smoker 23 77 100 808 
			 Occasional smoker 43 57 100 514 
			 Non smoker 58 42 100 8,026 
			 Total 55 45 100 9,431 
		
	
	Note:
	A smoking household is defined here as one in which there are one or more smokers other than the pupil.
	Source:
	NatCen/NFER Smoking, drinking and drug use among young people in England in 2004.

Weight Management Clinics

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if she will list primary care bodies which have set up weight management clinics;
	(2)  how many general practitioners have set up weight management clinics.

Caroline Flint: The information requested is not held centrally. However, the Department has asked strategic health authorities to develop plans in line with the public service agreement target to "halt the year-on-year rise in obesity among children aged under 11 in the context of a broader strategy to tackle obesity in the population as a whole". Action to manage, prevent and treat obesity in the national health service is set out in the White Paper "Choosing Health".
	The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence is preparing definitive guidance on the prevention, identification, management and treatment of obesity. This is due in early 2007. Meanwhile, in order to help and support primary care trusts on improving obesity services, the Department is developing tools such as a weight loss guide, obesity care pathway and obesity toolkit, due for publication at end of 2005. There are also seven adult and seven child NHS obesity clinics in England.